Wichita's Biggest Loser

Back to it!

2008-06-12T13:43:00.000-07:00

Man, am I out of my routine! The contests both ended. Vacation happenned. And I just have not gotten back into the swing of things!

Lots to blog about...but more than anything, I just need the accountability.

It's easy to lose weight. But changing habits...so difficult. I definitely haven't stopped running to food as a source of comfort. so much to blog about that!

I also keep going back and forth with whether to merge my two blogs or not.

hmmm....we'll see.

thanks for stopping by!

A year later pics

2008-04-25T21:05:00.000-07:00

Last year I took my kids on one of our church's mission trips and on the last day we stop off and take a tour of this glass art place and they have this cool gazebo of hand blown glass blue birds. I took a pic with Ciera and Noah last year.

We went back again this year and took another photo. It's amazing to see how big my kids have grown and conversely, how small I have gotten. The funny/sad thing is that this picture wasn't even at my heaviest and I weigh less than the newer pic.

I suppose they are momentos for the journey. Pretty cool.

(click on the pics to see them larger in a new window)

Are you a bigger loser than Marko Contest ends today

2008-04-25T14:59:00.000-07:00

Well, the results won't be posted until Monday. Last week I was in 4th place at 230 lbs. I gained (?) 2 lbs this week. I'm not really happy about that but I am pumped at the results.

In 12 weeks I lost 40 lbs! that's 3 and 1/3 pound a week! Want more? My sweet wife Jen lost 24 pounds! While she was frustrated with many weeks of one pound or no pounds lost, in 12 weeks she averaged 2 lbs a week! THAT'S HUGE!

And yes, Marko won...and he looks great! My hope and prayer for all of us is that we'll keep it off.

Jen says she has more to lose...I know I have 30 more to go...so maybe in 12 more weeks we'll be in maintence mode.

The Wichita contest ends next Saturday so I'll try to post some pics of that too and hopefully win the right to keep my blog name.

(these thumbnails are pretty small. You can click on them for the high res version. although, you may not want to click the first one...that's pretty fat. ;^) )

My first real jog

2008-04-09T12:04:00.000-07:00

In Dr. H's book, he talks about every morning going out for an hour jog/walk. That sounds as exciting as....exactly...it's not. I'd rather go to the Y and watch TV while I sweat.

But I really want to follow his instructions and today I gave it a shot. I jogged for 3 minutes, then did his recommended Dynamic Warm Up which lasted another 12 minutes. Then I jogged...and jogged...and walked....and jogged....and walked...and jogged....(you get the idea)...for 30 minutes then turned around. At an hour I stopped and just walked home ( a little more than half a mile).

then I took my sweet wife and Charis and we drove my track. Dr. H reccomends running at a pace of 5 miles an hour being the goal. In one hour, I jogged and walked 5 and a half miles! And hit 7 miles with the before and after.

pretty cool. i've never done anything like that. It'll be more fun when my foot doesn't hurt afterwards and when it's not 30 degrees. burrrrrrrrrrr

What a week....another 4.6 lbs....gone!

2008-03-30T20:51:00.001-07:00

Well, I honestly didn't know what to expect this week. On Wednesday, I was stressed and I ate a bunch of mini candy bars....probably 400 calories worth. On Thursday....I didn't do much better.

I did exercise all week except Wednesday and increased my intensity in one set of videos.

The hard part was, over these last 12 weeks, this was the first time I'd really sought the false intimacy of food for comfort again. Both Wed and Thursday I ate late at night, all carbs, and pretty significant amounts, at least I thought.

so when I weighed in this morning, I had very low expectations, and when the scale rang out 234.4 I simply couldn't believe it. Blown away.

I'm resting today. Didn't go crazy with food. but didn't keep track either. Which is still an issue. My "free" day is an exercise in realizing how much work I still have left, even though I do better than I did before. But that's for another blog post another time.

On Thursday I weigh in for the Biggest Loser comp here in Wichita. I need to weigh 229. I have no doubt that in 4 days I can, at the very least, lose enough water weight to weigh in. Which is exciting.

I still need to keep working and I still have the YS loser comp too. But the real game, is getting to my goal and keeping it off.

Big week: 5 lbs, only 10 to go!

2008-03-23T06:26:00.000-07:00

At this stage of the game, 5 lbs is HUGE! after only losing one last week, I was really hoping for a great week. I would have loved 5 lbs but didn't expect it at all and pretty much assumed I'd still be in the 240's.

not today though! 239!!! I'm only 10 pounds (and 12 days) from my goal weight for the local competition here! that is so sweet!

I worked out hard this week. Ate really well with the occasion of a couple hundred calories over on Friday night. It's nice to have a day off before hitting it again! and losing 5 lbs is great motivation to not consume a bunch of crap today, Easter Sunday.

I think losing 5 lbs will be a big gain for me on the Marko contest too, so that is sweet!

239! wow! that is 70 lbs in 11 weeks. simply amazing! only 9 pounds from how much I weighed when I got married in 1997! I simply cannot wait!!!!

The Biggest Loser and my DEXA

2008-03-17T20:57:00.000-07:00

Based soley on a post by McNutt, I went out and bought Dr. Rob Huizenga's book "Where did all the fat go?" Dr. H is the doctor on The Biggest Loser, and in the book, gives his WOW! prescription to reach one's ideal weight.

Early on in the book Dr. H stresses the need to get an accurate measurement of one's "fat weight." Which is basically finding out how much muscle you have, how much bone weight, and how much fat.

There are lots of different ways Dr. H suggests to find this weight. The easiest and most accurate way I was able to do this was to get a DEXA (Dual Energy X-ray Absorptiometry) scan. I was able to do this at the local university. I found it by googling: DEXA Wichita.

The contestants on the Biggest Loser, amid all the tests, get to do an iDEXA, which is a newer version of the DEXA. Wichita State has only one of two DEXA's with the new programming made for conducting body scans for weight loss. And for $100, they were happy to have me lay on a table, perfectly still, for 6 minutes while the table moved me underneath the x-ray so it could shoot billions of electrons through my body and calculate my density.

Here's a pic of the DEXA:

After getting dressed, I received my printout. On the tv show they get a cool color picture. Mine is low-res black and white. It is hard to tell all of my fat because it isn't in color but you can see a difference on my inner thighs.

You can see the light gray is the muscle and the dark gray is the fat. It's all over my body, but you can really see it there on my "loins." (I just wanted to say "loins.")

The coolest thing about the DEXA is that you get a realistic analysis of your weight. Knowing that, you can calculate how many calories your body burns normally (your resting metabolic rate), and the amount of calories you need to lose .5% of fat each week. But that's not all.

The best part for me is that it gives me a realistic goal. Here are my results:

According to the DEXA, I have 175 lbs of muscle and bone. I thought 175 lbs was close to my goal weight! Even if I had zero fat, I would still weigh 175 lbs! dang! According to Dr. H, men are supposed to have 12%-18% of fat. Which means that my goal weight is 199-213 lbs. That is only 40 lbs away!!!!

What a RELIEF!!!! So cool!

I do wish I would have gotten this done when I was at my heaviest. I weighed in at 309 (fully clothed). I now weigh 244. I got this done last week, with breakfast in my belly and some light clothes I weighed 246.

On the Biggest Loser they get to see before and after DEXA scans and it is so cool to see the difference! Nevertheless, I am so glad I through down the Franklin. It has given me so much good information and has really helped me focus on my goal which seems so very close now!

Only one more pound this week. Down to 244

2008-03-17T11:55:00.000-07:00

What a wierd week! If I had been on the biggest loser...I totally would have been eliminated. I thought I did really well this week. Loads of workouts...quite possibly the most workouts in a single week. Really pushing hard too. Even had a double day on Saturday.

On Friday night I over ate, but not by much. Nevertheless, when I weighed in on Sunday morning I was only .8 pounds less than I was last week! So frustrating!

Of course I got all depressed and way ate bad yesterday. so I'll have to work that off now. stupid!

But at least I still lost a pound. At that point I have 19 days to lose 15 pounds in order to reach my goal for the local contest here. That seems like a HUGE goals when I was counting on 4-5 lbs last week. We'll see how it goes.

On the bright side, I only have 40 lbs to go before I reach my goal weight. I did a DEXA scan which I've been meaning to blog about for a week. Pretty cool deal.

Woo Hoo!!! 245 lbs....

2008-03-10T06:00:00.000-07:00

Actually...it's 244.4, but I'm saying 245. I had an 8 day week last week instead of seven, so with being one day behind, I'm giving my self a .6 lb jumpstart for next week.

Not only am I only 15 lbs away from the Play it Again Sports goal, which two months ago seemed absolutely impossible, I was away on a youth trip this weekend with temptation all around!

We left on Friday and I simply packed a dinner. Saturday, I ate a HUGE breakfast (900 calories) knowing that I may possibly not be eating lunch or dinner. For lunch they were having chick filet and dinner, Pizza. So I grabbed two apples and two oranges from the hotel and had them along with only the fried chicken part of the sandwich for lunch.

I skipped the pizza and took the students out to ice cream where I had a rasberry lemonade smoothie made from lemonade sorbet.

Sunday morning I had a good breakfast at the hotel. With all kinds of muffins and rolls and sugar and biscuits and gravy, it was a temptation. But I did great and chose a couple boxes of raisen bran cereal and had an english muffin and a sausage pattie. then for lunch we went to mcdonald's where I had a hamburger and an ice cream cone (400 calories total).

anyway, there is so much more I could bore you about, but the end result was 6.6 lbs loss in 8 days and that's HUGE! I can't even remember when I weighed 244 lbs!!!! (of course I mean 245 ;^) )

The secret to my diet? TUNA! and my mother-in-law's relish

2008-03-05T07:51:00.000-08:00

Trying to keep up a ratio of 45% carbs, 30% protein, and 25% fat can be tricky. one of my staples has been to have tuna every day. I take between a teaspoon and a tablespoon of light mayo, combine it with a heaping spoon of my mother-in-law's incredible home made relish, and mix it with a can of tuna!

Then I eat the tuna on 1/2 serving of these garlic and herb bran crackers...dude, I look forward to it every day! Huge protien and it's so good!

It's somewhere like 250 calories for the whole thing. I'll break down the carbs/pro/fat when I get home.

sidebar: My in-laws came down for Noah's bday party on Friday and were absolutely blown away when they saw me! so fun! I told my mother-in-law that it was because of her relish!!!!

Awesome week! 3 more pounds! down to 251!

2008-03-02T16:14:00.000-08:00

This week I did great on food but bad on exercise. I only exercised three times this week. Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday. I did do 90 minutes when I was there though, so that is good. Just a lot of stuff going on with Noah's birthday party and Jen's parents coming down and being behind the 8 ball at work.

I'm pumped about this week though! I'm going to do a mini workout tonight and then I'm going to try to shoot for 6 double days this week. I figure if I lost three pounds with three 90 minute workouts, I might be able to ring up a six!

Also, for the local contest here, I still have a whole month till I weigh in! I thought it would be impossible to make it down to 229 but with a month and a couple days to go, I think I can get 22 lbs!

I'm going to work hard and really do it! I'm pumped! It feels so good to lose weight!

Something IS different! Another 5 lbs!

2008-02-25T13:17:00.000-08:00

I don't know how I did it, but I got another 5 lbs yesterday! so sweet! I haven't lost 5 pounds for WEEKS! I was expecting 3...hoping for 4...and then the scale says 5!

My clothes feel so great! Not only have I lost more than I did last year (38 pounds vs. 32 pounds) but I weigh less than I did last year when I became satisfied (256).

And this week was hard. I didn't want to work out. I didn't do very many doubles. I did 45 minutes Friday morning and walked two miles Saturday. I can't imagine how much I would have lost had I really killed it those two days.

I only need 25 pounds more in 5 weeks to tie for the win for the local competition!

that, AND, I'm finally on the board with the YS biggest loser competition. I debuted at #9 of the men and my sweet wife has maintained her hold on #5 for the ladies. so sweet!

I'm losing weight. feeling great. Can't wait to keep the momentum going!

It is starting to show!!!

2008-02-17T19:15:00.001-08:00

Not only am I fitting into old clothes, but my regular clothes are loose and LOOK great! It is so fun to lose weight! Last week I had one person finally ask me if I was losing weight again. This week there have been non stop comments.

It is so rewarding!

Last year, I reached this point and was so happy with it...that I stopped! and then I got back into the old habits.

Not this time. I just want to keep going and going and going!

I even slipped off my wedding ring tonight! Simply because I could! ha!

I'd post a pic...but I just look fat still. Maybe I should do a before an "while I'm still losing weight" pic.

Another 4 pounds! Downt o 259

2008-02-17T19:15:00.000-08:00

What a great feeling! 4 more pounds. and I really worked hard. It's funny because that is less than 2% but it feels GREAT. Three more pounds and I will be tied with where I was last year, when I lost 32 pounds and stopped at 256.

Four more pounds and it will be my lightest in YEARS!

I am halfway through the Biggest Loser Competition. So far I've lost 33 lbs! That is more than I lost last year, of course I weighed in heavier. that is after 6 weeks, including a HUGE 12 lb loss that first week.

I have six more weeks to go till I weigh back in. The goal is to get down to 229. That is 30 more pounds. I have six more weeks. And I've averaged 3-4 lbs a week. I don't see it happening. But if I lose 20 more pounds in six weeks, then I'll have lost over 50 lbs and that is absolutely awesome.

My sweet wife thinks I can do it. I'd love to! but it is going to take some work!!!

I love Matt

2008-02-13T12:40:00.000-08:00

This guy never stops! I'm talking about Matthew McNutt, from the Biggest Loser season 3. I'm currently involved in the Youth Specialties biggest loser competition. It is a private site but has a forum.

McNutt, who is helping us, left this gem today:

Okay, so we're well on our way to losing some weight here, and by now, people are starting to deal with their expectations vs. what they're actually seeing on the scale.

Unrealistic expectations can be one of the biggest killers on any diet.

Here is the reality: without exercise and only counting calories results in about 1-2 lbs a week weight loss for women, and 2-3 lbs a week for men. That's a good week. Adding exercise to the mix can add another pound or so of loss a week.

Here's the problem: we hold ourselves up to shows like the Biggest Loser and call that the standard for weight loss. I'm going to clue you on something - that's not all real weight loss. Well, not in the time frame you think it is. If you dig deep, you can find on the NBC site blogs from the show Doctors actually giving away the fact that some of those "weeks" on the ranch are actually ten days long. So if you're wondering how they can lose that much weight in a week ... it's because they can't. TV has to be bigger than real life, so they misrepresent time to make it seem more amazing.

The truth is, in season three when I was competing from home, I was holding myself up to the numbers that had been delivered in season two. I was KILLING myself. Exercising two and a half hours a day, absolutely militant about my calories, and losing about 8-10 lbs a week (remember, I started at 366 lbs; when I was around 250, I was lucky to lose five pounds a week with that same level of effort). And I was completely depressed, because I knew based on the numbers of season two that there was no way I could even compete.

Even the lowest guy would probably be ahead of me. At that point I had no idea about the actually time spent filming each "week." So when I flew out there for my on camera weigh in, I was absolutely stunned to find out that not only was my weight loss - which based on what I had seen on the show and the website should have been respectable, but certainly not in competition with anything on the ranch - was actually ahead of everyone. My percentage of weight loss and and my number of pounds lost was ahead of everyone! And yet I had been feeling like a failure because my expectations for myself were so unrealistic!

All this to say, do NOT let yourself lose momentum because you aren't hitting the numbers you see on TV. It's impossible. If you are losing weight, or if the scale is even just staying the same ... you are succeeding! You are making positive change in your life, you are modeling a healthy lifestyle that reflects the value of your body as the temple of God and that is a shining example to the teens in your youth groups and your families!

Over 30% of kids are obese or overweight, and the number is going to be closer to 50% by 2010. By making change now, whatever the rate of progress, you are showing the people around you that it is never too late, and that honoring God through the care of your body is something that can be accompished!

Keep it up! Don't ever be disappointed with any weight loss!

McNutt...who doesn't love this guy?!

Another 5 pounds! Woo Hoo Part Deaux

2008-02-10T19:46:00.000-08:00

Alright! I dropped another 5 lbs! down to 263! After having a crappy weigh in last week I was really actually hoping for more, but still, a 4 pound average two weeks in a row is good.

Two thoughts:

1. I'm still hacked that I lost over thirty pounds last year. So far this year I've lost 29 lbs in 5 weeks. Pretty good. But, had I kept off the weight I lost last year...I would be down to 231!!!! I can't believe I'm working off fat that I gained last year! And at this rate, it'll take me two more weeks to simply get where I was last year! At least I'm not going back. so that's good.

2. On Sundays I weigh in and take the day off. I don't count calories and I don't exercise, allegedly giving myself a break. Which is true. The other has become an excuse to eat whatever I want. And I don't freak out. I've probably eaten 2500 calories today. The problem? I think probably all but 40 grams was carbs and fat. That's the kind of eating that gets you fat. And it's tearing my insides out! not a good feeling!

Woo Hoo!!! New "old" Pants!

2008-02-08T08:11:00.000-08:00

It was just a few months ago that I blew out my last pair of 42 inch jeans. I was getting so fat that even those HUGE jeans were getting tight. Then...they ripped. CRAP!

So I had to choose...get another 42 to squeeze into, or bust out the 44's. I've NEVER had 44's before.

Well, I've been eyeing some 40's that were in my dresser that I probably only wore a handful of times when I was ballooning up. I put them on last night and guess what?

LIKE A GLOVE!

There is nothing like fitting into skinnier clothes. So I'm sporting one of my new "old" pairs of pants today and I feel GREAT! All the coutning calories, packing up gear, sweating....it is all soooo worth it!

Eat more to lose weight

2008-02-07T09:00:00.000-08:00

Matthew McNutt, former Biggest Loser contestant has a GREAT post today on his blog about the need to eat more in order to lose weight. This single piece of advice has been so helpful for me! I never feel hungry (unless I go long stretches without eating) and there is so much food to eat.

sidebar: One difference is that I never feel absolutely full, either. This goes back to my childhood and how I just never felt like we had any food, so whenever I got something good tasting to eat, I would gorge and gorge and gorge. I had no boundaries. The feeling of not being full did take a while to get used to.

For my weight (268) I am supposed to eat a little more than 1800 calories. And I hit it. The harder part for me is keeping my percentages to 45% carbs, 30% protein, and 25% fat.

Nevertheless, check out his blog. It's full of GREAT stuff.

Talk about Comfy...

2008-02-04T01:02:00.000-08:00

So the other day I was cold and I grabbed my NYWC track sweatshirt that my sweet wife has been wearing around the house and I put it on. Which made me think, when I'm skinny, will I wear my old clothes around, like my wife wears my gargantuan clothes now?

3 lbs and some crappy scale

2008-02-04T00:55:00.000-08:00

So after another tough week, I weighed in this morning...I "only" lost 3 more pounds, taking me down to 168. I cannot weight for 11 more pounds! that will be more than I lost last time.

And I say "only" because in reality, 3 lbs is really good.

This week our scale we were using broke so my sweet wife got another one. But there is no way I only lost 3 lbs. I did absolutely great with food and exercise. So it weighed me heavy (which I'll take because it will mean that next week will be even bigger!).

After church today, I ran to walmart and bought 3 other scales. Weighed myself 6 times on each. One weighed me heavy, one weighed my light, and the other two were in between them. In the end, we went back to the one we started with.

For the curious, the one we like is the Health-O-Meter scale (pictured) that holds memory for 4 people ($40). The one that weighed heavy was one by Weight Watchers.

My Life Saver

2008-01-31T22:17:00.000-08:00

I love Orange Julius!!! But I am too cheap to buy them. So when I started watching my calories last year I quickly fell in love with smoothies. Here's my killer recipe! I have one every morning, and it, along with my cereal, make me feel like I'm eating so much!

3/4 cup Dole frozen fruit

1 serving of Whey Protein Powder

4 oz. dannon light yogurt (some fruit variety)

1/2 cup OJ.

It's 270 calories, 37.5 carbs, 30 protein, and 2 fat. Lots of carbs...tis true. That's the fruit and OJ. The protein is almost all the powder, along with 110 calories. And it tastes soooooo stinking good!!!!

Another 5 pounds! Woo Hoo

2008-01-31T22:09:00.000-08:00

Meant to update this all week. I lost another 5 pounds last week which takes me to 271. I think the most I got down to last year was 258. I can't wait to surpass that!!! I need to get down to something insane like 229 by the start of April in order to qualify to win the Biggest Loser Championship.

What is that? Another 40+ pounds in two months!!!! I just don't see it happening. that'd be an average of 5 pounds a week. That's a lot. But I'm exericising and eating really well. So we'll see.

The Youth Specialties Biggest Loser Contest

2008-01-24T08:35:00.000-08:00

Marko announced through email and then on his blog the start of a new Biggest Loser contest! Marko has gained some pounds (I believe truly in honor of the late great Mike Yacconelli) and he's tired of it.

And I hear it! So Marko and the kind folks at YS are putting together a Biggest Loser Competition (the details of which you can find on Marko's blog) along with loads of prizes. The other cool thing is that Matthew McNutt (super great guy and youth worker) from Biggest Loser Season 3 fame, is going to help with it. McNutt is the man and has a great blog full of tips for losing weight.

Since I'm doing the local competition here, this will help me continue the hard work a little longer. My buddy Sean is doing it as well, and he could easily win it! Although I told him that if there's a tie between himself, Andy (a great youth pastor in Illinois), and Marko, then I think they should all wrestle for it, and I volunteer to film it.

My new cereal trick

2008-01-22T07:55:00.001-08:00

In the mornings I eat either one serving or two. I like to have two! There is something about having cereal in the morning, even when I'm limiting my calories.

Anyway, I was using a big bowl for my cereal because I was eating a cup and a half of Total and it's too much for my small bowls. But being in the big bowl....it was just....I dunno....it seemed like I was not getting a lot.

So I switched it out and am using the small bowls and filling them up to the top! I like it cause it's like I'm eating a FULL bowl of cereal and I'm probably shorting myself on both servings. I'm eating less, but it seems like more.

What do you think? Cereal in a small bowl or big bowl? Or if you have any other tips/tricks I'd love to hear them!

Brush with Biggest Loser Fame, part deux

2008-01-20T15:46:00.000-08:00

Well, I rushed from work and got there at 10 after 5 pm. Evidently they closed the line at 5 pm, even though they were allegedly going to be there till 6 pm. It was bittersweet. While I felt bad for Jim and Julie, both noticably tired of meeting people (but still great attitudes), I really wanted to say, "Hey!"

I tried to bargain my way into the line, or at least some swag, but it wasn't going to happen. Everyone in line was able to choose either both DVD's or a copy of the new Fitness book. Pretty sweet deal! And although the crew wouldn't part with either of those, they did hook me up with two BL water bottles and, SURPRISE, two packs of EXTRA sugar free gum!

With only one couple left to greet, Julie (without shoes) still gave the coupole a great big hug and Jim was more than happy to meet them and kid around.

One thing I didn't notice in yesterday's setup is that on one side of the booths are the before pictures, and on the other side are the afters. Jim and Julie were standing right next to Bill's before pic, and it looks like Jim took some artistic license during his stay with Bill's pic.

Jim and Julie still look great, and though it's a giant marketing blitz, it's still a pretty cool deal.

4 more pounds!

2008-01-20T06:16:00.000-08:00

Down to 276! I still have to average more than 5 lbs every week to win the biggest loser. Man, that is going to be tough!

The Biggest Loser Comes to Wichita

2008-01-19T14:09:00.000-08:00

Being a Biggest Loser junkee, when I heard the "show" was coming to Wichita, one of the fattest cities in America, I knew I had to check it out. I took some pics, but I was upstairs. Sorry they aren't better. And no, this isn't me or my family in these pics.

Today "they" were at Town East Mall here in town. The two "stars"? Julie and Jim from last season.

They are at the mall today and tomorrow from 11 am - 6 pm (I think). We got there after 1 pm and man, talk about lines!!! They were set up kind of in four different stations or quadrants with long lines for three of them.

The biggest line, of course, was to meet Jim and Julie. It snaked around and was filled with a bunch of people. Jim and Julie seemed really great. They took pictures with people, gave people hugs, and talked and talked and talked. It didn't seem like there was anyone really pushing the line. People could talk to them as long as they wanted to.

And props to Jim and Julie! With all kinds of people coming up to them, hugging them like long lost friends, they seemed, as long as I was there, to genuinely greet each person with a smile, handshake or hug.

The show had a couple photographers up to take pics of people meeting Jim and Julie. And they had a table of autographed pics from the Finale, along with the two new DVDs (tried to find them afterwards at Best Buy and Target but had no luck) and the new BL training book.

Jim (still looking slim) and Julie (in a slimming black outfit) were autographing the DVDs, book, and pics and it seemed like they were just giving them away to the people who got to meet them. I thought that was pretty cool. I had my whole fam with me and we weren't going to wait 90 minutes, which is why I don't know for sure they were giving them away.

The other stations consisted of three notebook computers set up back to back to back (like a triangle) on a bar table so people could sign up for the Million Pound Match Up. For those of us tired of product placement, you'll appreciate this. What was between all three notebook computers in the center of the table? A big bucket of Wrigley Extra! Neil would have had a hey day!

The other two stations consisted of a table with some staff who were taking people's height, weighing them, etc. The last station was taking the "before" picture.

Pretty cool. I hope I can make it back tomorrow. I have to work so I doubt it. I'd LOVE to get my hands on those two new DVD's and be able to chat with Jim and Julie. Eh, there's always myspace, I suppose.

This has never EVER happenned before!

2008-01-18T09:45:00.000-08:00

Tonight Jen and I went on a date and we saved up all of our calories for dinner. We ate out at what may be one of my new fav restaruants, Cheddars.

We split a Texas Cheese Fries, and then I had a rack of ribs with mashed potatoes and southern style green beans, and two croissants with honey butter. Oh....it was sooooo good.

But I couldn't eat all my food. After two weeks of counting calories...I left half the rack and took it home. And...I felt like puking. I was so tempted to bust out some bulemic action, but didn't. but I could see wanting too!

then we went to Cold Stone Creamery, where we'd never gone too before. And I got the smallest Mint Chocolate Chip thing. ah...I love mint!

anyway, I got halfway done and I through in the towel! I love ice cream and I don't think I've ever ordered the smallest size of ice cream and then I couldn't even finish it!

Then, this morning, still stuffed from our HUGE dinner, I could barely force down my breakfast!

And to think I used to eat like this ALL THE TIME! dude!!!

Back to the Biggest Loser

2008-01-17T11:06:00.000-08:00

Sorry for the lack of posts....I am alive.

And i"m back to losing weight and working out! There is another constest in town to lose weight. I really blew it last year...and I'm not going to let it pass me by again. I weighed in nearly two weeks ago at 309! Whew! that's a lot of weight!

Last Sunday I was down to 280.

I weigh in every Sunday so I'm pumped to see what week two will bring. If it gets me 5 lbs...I'll be so grateful.

I'm making it one of my major priorities for the next 90 days. Just to see what I can do to get started. Since then, i haven't missed a day at the gym, which has not been easy and I've been counting my calories.

Anyway welcome back!

The Heart Rate Monitor

2007-09-14T08:01:00.000-07:00

So back when I was really working out I was using my heart rate monitor. I really thought it was cool to really see how hard I was working out.

After I work out I would take off the heart rate monitor (super sweaty) and put it in a baggy so it wouldn't get the rest of my stuff all gross.

After a few months it wasn't nearly as responsive. Probably needed a new battery.

Nevertheless, I never planned on not working out for like months and so I put it away sweaty in it's baggy and there it sat for at least 6 months or more. Pretty freakikng gross.

So when I broke it out earlier this week it had all this calcification of sorts on the electrodes. I did my best to scrape them off hoping it would still work.

It WORKED!

Or so I thought. For some reason it keeps track of my heart rate tons worse than it did before. I changed out the battery. I need to take it to the Y for the ultimate test...working out on the machines. The machines there pick up on the HRM really well. So if it works there I'll chalk it up to maybe the watch battery or something, before I go out and buy another strap. I'm so dumb.

Here's the monitor I have in case you are looking at purchasing one: Polar F11

(btw, mine fits small. I thought I was getting a manly man size one, but I think it's gender neutral and I have it on the last hole on the watch band and it's uncomfortable. When I lose some pounds it'll feel better. Until then...wish the strap was bigger)

Another Workout IN!!!

2007-09-14T07:57:00.000-07:00

Walked my kids to school and Charis and I kept going...4 miles total in one hour. I figure that's pretty good. I remember in high school if you were going to walk a mile in PE it had to be within 20 minutes. So 15 minute miles walking seems okay especially considering that I would probably run one in 12 minutes...

One interesting thing is that when I work out at the Y on the eliptical trainer or some other machine, after an hour I am a sweaty SWEATY mess and I work out hard. After walking for an hour, I am tired but not nearly as sweaty. Wierd.

Walking the track

2007-09-13T20:32:00.000-07:00

alright! Did my first work out today since joining Traineo. Didn't do it after work like I planned, but I did do it after dinner. We took the kids down to the high school and walked a mile around the track. Good times.

dude, something has to change

2007-09-12T23:01:00.000-07:00

I signed up for Traineo and have a bunch of GREAT motivators. But I still haven't worked out. I'm still overeating. Dude....this can't go on.

I feel so pressed for work I stay up late doing work. Then I wake up late. So I skip exercising. And I'm tired at work. So I don't get enough done. So I take home work. And then I feel so pressed for work I...you get the idea.

Every day it's the same.

I got to break out of this horrible habit!!!!

Tomorrow, I'm exercising no matter what. Of course, I'm so fat nowadays that maybe my karaoke counts as aerobic exercise...

My morning revelation

2007-09-11T07:57:00.000-07:00

so...I wrote a couple books and got some cash and I'm going to take my kids on a surprise trip to Walt Disney World in December. I'm driving to work this morning when IT hits me.

"There is no way I'm going to spend THOUSANDS of dollars taking my kids to WDW and be too fat to ride the rides."

This has already happenned to me at two other theme parks. I was too fat for the safety latch to close. How sad.

Well, I'm not going to stand outside rides at Disney World and watch my kids enjoy it because I was too out of control.

I have three months.

One year later...7 lbs less

2007-08-30T08:43:00.000-07:00

So this year has sucked. I can blame it on writing two books, but really, i didn't do that till the spring. After the newpaper article I just totally lost my drive. And I gained weight.

I was worried that I would have gained it all back. And be more. Like OVER 300.

So I went on MOnday and weighed in....281....whew! While it sucks to be at that number it's nice to not have gained more back. So I worked out Monday and Tuesday and today, Thursday.

I know I'm lame, but when I work out, man, my whole life is better. I feel better, I feel more confident, I'm proud of myself, I get a good start on the day, I eat better, I'm more help at home.

Even knowing all of that, this morning at 5:00 am...I was still having a hard time getting up! But I did. And then I was sore. (but not as sore as Wed). And then the Y was hard. But i did it. And i know from last year, that the pain will subside and I'll feel even better still.

The secret really is in the eating though. I need to count my calories and eat wisely and then it'll be so sweet.

So I'm back. And that's good.

Failure isn't final

2007-05-04T20:36:00.000-07:00

I always thought I was motivated by money.

I thought that if I could somehow tie money to weight loss, that would be the thing to get me to lose weight. If I would just get a deal where somone paid me a bonus for every pound I lost...that would be great.

Then along came the Biggest Loser! Whoa! that is awesome! And I knew I wasn't big enough for that show, but if I could somehow make a contest in Wichita...then I could win that and I would lose weight.

So I did that. Thus the blog.

Only it wasn't for big money. $50 and anyone could have won it...they picked the winner out of a hat. It wasn't based on who lost the most. Although, it still motivated me and I went from 289 to 258. YES!

Then when that competition was almost over, Play it again Sports had a REAL contest for REAL money...$5K. Finally, my dream came true! I could finally get paid to lose weight. I had already lost 30 pounds and if I did this contest I would lose another 60! YES!!!!

So I signed up. And waited. Didn't do much. Didn't lose any weight. I figured I'd start it up later. After all, I lost 20 of my pounds in a month for the biggest loser deal, I could certainly do some damage in two months so I can wait.

Long story short...tomorrow is the awards day. tomorrow the contest is over. And tomorrow someone is going to walk away with $5K. Othes will walk away with other prizes.

Not me.

I didn't even go to my final weigh in. I knew I wouldn't win. So why take a ten pound loss to them.

Then, over five short months, I think I've gained it all back.

How sad is that? I'm afraid to weigh in. All those great feelings of clothes fitting and feeling great...I suck. So crappy.

One of the contestants from TBL was told that they have three strikes to weight loss. If they gain 5 lbs, that is strike one. If they gain 7 pounds that is strike two. If they gain 10 pounds, that is strike three and they will go back to thier original weight and probably gain more!

That has certainly been true for me.

Here is the good news: Failure isn't final.

I have the tools. I know I can do it.

Part of my stress has been writing a book. That manuscript is due July 2nd. So on that day, I will celebrate by going to the Y.

The good news is as well, that if I eat right, I can lose weight without even exercising! Shoot, I'm so fat now, walking is exercising!

So I have less than two months, but I can eat better now. Which I am going to do.

My hope, my dream, is that Xmas time, I'll have a little more than 4 months. That's, at the very least, 40 pounds I could drop. Maybe more. And then, next summer, I should be down to my goal weight.

Oh, how nice will that be.

So tomorrow will suck. I will feel like a failure. But I know that my failure isn't final.

Monday Morning Workout

2007-02-05T10:26:00.001-08:00

I finally got back to the gym. What a pain. It takes so long to get ready. I hate packing up all my crap at night. I dread going to go workout and how hard it’s going to be.

But I did it. And I feel GREAT. Even when I was working out I was like, “dude, what the hell was I thinking!!!!” I’m lame.

So I did the ol’ Bobby Reed for 45 minutes and I did 15 min on the stairmaster with HR control at 160. That was hard but sweet.

Now I’m going to go eat lunch and write it down!

It feels great to be back!

Addition By Subraction

2007-02-05T10:23:00.001-08:00

First of all, I am an idiot.

I lose 13 pounds in less than 10 days. HUGE. Finally break the 30 lb mark. So what do I do then?

Take 9 days off! I’m so dumb. It started off innocently enough by just not writing down what I was eating on that Saturday I weighed in. Then on Sunday I didn’t. Then…it goes on and on. And then I got stuck into two thoughts:

1. If I don’t keep count, then it’s an off day. I’ll just eat whatever I want and then I’ll start again tomorrow.

2. I’ve got to eat this bad food for me now, because I won’t get to eat it again for such a long time.

So dumb. That’s the attitude that got me here in the first place. Such a bad attitude. That idea of eating now. I’ve got to eat it now!!! Oh man. And I’ve found out, that unless I plan my meal, i.e. take a lunch with me or a plan, I end up over eating. And if I don’t write it down, then I’m screwed. And if I don’t pack my crap up the night before, I’m not going to pack up in the morning.

I can’t believe all the head games I have to play to do this thing. I’ve got to be so proactive and vigilant! And I’m so afraid of not getting to eat anything fun or good ever again, which is just dumb.

So I didn’t weigh in on Saturday, for fear of seeing a weight gain and because I got up too late.

So where is the addition among all this negativity?

Jen was going to have me go to Kohl’s for some close out clearance clothes and I need some new pants. But I didn’t want to spend more money on fat clothes that I am hoping aren’t going to fit soon. So in a latch ditch effort, I grabbed some pants that I was hanging on to in hopes that they’d fit me when I was skinnier.

And they do! I’m wearing a pair now! I have two good pairs and one pair that I still need to lose more weight to get into, but I can wear them and button them. They’re just pretty tight. So, jen says I look better in pants that aren’t so baggy! So I’m finally downsizing my clothes!!! HOORAY!!!!!!!

3 more pounds!!!

2007-01-30T07:59:00.001-08:00

I’m late checking in but I’m down another three. I’ve finally broken the 30 pound mark! Since beginning this journey at 288, I’m down to 256. That’s a good chunk of change!

I haven’t been exercising but I’ve been a champ about counting my calories, etc. I feel like a slacker. I need to hit that gym. Tomorrow is my hope!

I’ve screwed around Sat, Sun, and yesterday so that isn’t good. But if I can do a good job today through Friday and hit the gym Wed-Fri, I bet I may even get down another pound.

I’m pumped. It’s such a good feeling to be losing weight! Only 76 more pounds! That looks a lot better than 108! Woo HOO! Rock on!

BACK to 259!!! HOORAY!

2007-01-22T09:45:00.001-08:00

Alright! I weighed in last Tuesday and did the spin class. It was the only day I exercised last week. The rest of the week I have been hardcore about counting my calories. On Saturday I drove down to the central Y and weighed in socks, underwear, jeans, and an undershirt, and I was back to 259!

Such a great feeling to be back!

I can’t weight till Saturday to weigh in again. For some reason, I’ve always had trouble passing this 30 lbs mark, and I’m hoping to blow it out of the water Saturday! I’m still hardcore on my calories and need to go to bed earlier so I can exercise. There’s just so much other stuff to do during the day!!! ARGH! No excuses. I just got to get to it!

Okay, really, I'm back now

2007-01-16T06:46:00.001-08:00

So, I hit the Spin class again and finally feel like I’m back. I have my head back in gear, I’m not screwing around.

So where am I? How did I do over the break? Am I still in the Biggest Loser comp?

1. 269. Which brings us to #2

2. That is 10 pounds since my last weigh in. 5 more than I weighed officially for the BL comp with Play It Again Sports, which takes us to #3

3. Uh, not really. I basically have, again, 40 days. I’m such a procrastinator. It really burns since I finally got my wish to have an actual big prize money chance, and I’ve blown it. I could have lost weight and made some sweet moolah.

Which brings me back to earth. I’m in this for the long haul. This is my last time to weigh 269. I’m still 19 lbs less than I started this summer. And I have no doubt that I can lose a TON of weight before summer begins.

Progress, not perfection, right?

Right!

Progress...not perfection

2006-12-28T06:18:00.001-08:00

Okay, I’m back…it’s been a while. I haven’t worked out very much. I haven’t counted my calories. I’ve over eaten. I’ve eaten lots of chocolate. I’m afraid of the scale.

But I’m back. I worked out today with the cycle class and did 20 min on the stairmaster. I’m going to count my calories today and I’m going to keep working out and being active. And this time next year, I will be less than 200 lbs. And what a day that will be. I can’t wait!

Last Wichita Eagle Article

2006-12-19T06:55:00.001-08:00

1 challenge pounds

BY KAREN SHIDELER

The Wichita Eagle

LOOKING AND FEELING TRIMMER, WICHITALK'S WEIGHT-LOSS CHALLENGE TEAM MEMBERS SAY THEY'LL CONTINUE THEIR EFFORTS

They're disappointed -- and delighted. They missed their combined goal by nearly 50 pounds -- but they say that without the WichiTalk Weight-Loss Challenge, they wouldn't have lost the 107 ½ pounds they did. Their faces and bodies definitely show the results of their efforts. In September, WichiTalk introduced six Wichitans who agreed to go public with their three-month effort to lose weight. They set their own goals and decided what approach to use.

This is the final report on the group, just in time to help you think about the pitfalls and successes ahead if losing weight is one of your New Year's resolutions. Watch for more advice to help you along, beginning in the Jan. 2 WichiTalk.

The first advice from our team members: Enlist a friend or two. All six said being part of a group made it easier to stick with their efforts, even though they got together only twice -- at the beginning and the end.

Reach Karen Shideler at 316-268-6674 or kshideler@wichitaeagle.com.

Tom Allen

Bio: Age 43. Married with three children. Teacher and coach at Northwest High School.

Goal: 40 pounds. Lost 10.

Weekends and the "battle with snacks" kept him from losing more. He has begun to work out and hopes to continue to "improve my health at a slow and steady pace."

His advice: "Most important is to find a way to motivate yourself, and work to be a better you."

Jamie Goltz

Bio: Age 23. Married. Does secretarial-clerical work for Army National Guard.

Goal: 25 to 30 pounds. Lost 30, in part because she got sick.

With her doctor's permission, she wants to continue losing a pound here and there as her pregnancy progresses. Her baby is due in May, and her doctor told her that the heavier she is, the harder it will be to deliver.

Her advice: Go with what you believe in, and don't try to overdo it. Read labels and watch portion sizes.

Toni Harden

Bio: Age 46. Single with two children. Para educator at Wells Special Education Center.

Goal: 20 to 30 pounds. Lost 11.

She will continue to work out daily and to try to lose more, by counting calories and watching fat intake. "Working out first thing in the morning seems to be the best for me."

Her advice: Plan before you eat. Take the extra time to plan your meals for the whole week, and plan snacks, too.

Crystal Iseman

Bio: Age 26. Married, three children. Stay-at-home mom, day-care provider and college student.

Goal: 25 pounds. Lost 18 ½.

Losing weight was easy at first -- as time went on, not gaining became reason to celebrate. "I have realized that I am doing much better just losing a pound or so a week, so it doesn't feel like I am depriving myself."

Her advice: Find a weight-loss buddy. Take a few days off if you're getting burned out -- but don't overdo it. Focus on size instead of the scale: "Size can change quite a bit without the scale moving much, because of working out." Enlist the support of your spouse, friends and family.

Andrea McClellan

Bio: Age 31. Married with two children. Stay-at-home mom.

Goal: 25 pounds. Lost 15.

"I am doing it right this time around." The weight is staying off, and "If it takes me two more months to slowly reach my goal, that is fine with me." As a result of losing weight, she's using her inhaler less often for her asthma. "How awesome is that?"

Her advice: Set your mind to it. Only you can be in charge of the weight loss. Listen to the voice in the back of your head that says, "Don't eat that! What about all the hard work you did today?" Don't listen when it says, "Boy, I sure would like to eat that last piece of pie." At the drive-through, get a kids' meal with apples instead of fries (skip the dipping sauce) and give the toy to someone special -- yourself!

Ken Rawson

Bio: Age 30. Married with three children. Director of student ministries at First United Methodist Church.

Goal: 15 pounds. Lost 23.

Waking up early to work out was tough. Keeping a food journal and counting calories was inconvenient. But it worked. He has signed up for the KSN/Play It Again Sports Biggest Loser Competition (see box) and will keep doing what he has been doing.

His advice: Get involved with a group or friend, and join a message board. Keep a food log. Count calories. Get a workout DVD. Get off the couch: "Anything that you do is better than nothing." You may not lose as much as the people on TV, but "the feeling of fitting in my clothes, moving my belt another notch, feeling great, living a healthier life for my kids and sweet wife, and watching the man on the inside slowly emerge from the man on the outside have been the greatest rewards so far."

Reach Karen Shideler at 316-268-6674 or kshideler@wichitaeagle.com.

Another challenge

Play It Again Sports and KSN are partnering for their version of Wichita's Biggest Loser. Participants, who must be at least 18, must register at the stores, at 8815 W. 13th St. or 11309 E. Kellogg, by Jan. 31 and will have 90 days to lose weight. For more information, visit the stores.

-- Karen Shideler

I'm a slacker

2006-12-05T07:26:00.000-08:00

Today is Tuesday and I chose to sleep in a warm bed instead of sweating this morning. I suck. Yesterday I overslept and this morning I didn't want to get out of bed and go sweat. But I wish I had.

Tomorrow is a new day and if I do a good job eating, then I'm still ahead of the game.

My goal for my Friday weigh in...1 pound. Just to get to 258 and be officially 30 pounds less, that will be GREAT!

Well...The Eagle article is over and comes out Dec. 19th

2006-12-05T05:51:00.000-08:00

Here is your spoiler...I won! Pretty cool. I kinda feel bad that 23 pounds is what won the Eagle story challenge. I thought I would really lose a lot more. And when you put 23 pounds against the amounts of weight people lose on the Biggest Loser, 23 seems pretty small.

One of the girls didn't even show up. So that kind of stunk. But five of us got together to hang out, take our pics, and stuff. So it's all over except that we can post our final weight loss on Dec. 15th for the article.

I am super grateful to Karen for doing this and taking a chance on us. Way cool. And I seriously don't know if I would be 23 pounds lighter had she not done the article. And it's set me up for cointinuing on. And that's huge.

It is really fun to win, though. LIke I said, I wish I had more to brag about than 23 lbs, but it's still 23 lbs. And it's 29 total. So that's cool. I don't know if I'll end up with the $50 as I think they were going to do a drawing for the $50 and one of us was going to win it, not neccessarily the biggest loser.

And again, the cool thing is that I'm set up to do this new Biggest Loser challenge. I know how hard it is to really do this, where a lot of people won't make it. But I don't think 23 lbs is going to do it for the new challenge.

My latest update I'm sending to the Eagle

2006-12-04T12:41:00.001-08:00

Well, today is the last day of the Eagle’s weight loss challenge. Here is the update I sent Karen.

From: Ken Rawson
Sent: Monday, December 04, 2006 2:39 PM
To: 'Karen Shideler'
Subject: RE: See you Monday!

Karen!!! While I am probably not going to end up as the winner, I just wanted to again, thank you for this opportunity! I don’t think I’d be 29 pounds lighter without your help! Thanks so much!

See below for the answers to the questions. And thanks again!

Ken

From: Karen Shideler
Sent: Wednesday, November 29, 2006 1:27 PM
To: Ken Rawson;
Subject: See you Monday!

Gang,

I'm getting ready to leave the office for an out-of-town conference but will be back in plenty of time to see you at the Y on Monday -- Central Y, pix at 6:30 p.m. SHARP (if I have my way). I'll try to be there by 6.
PLEASE WEAR something you couldn't before or something you just feel great in. We decided boxy red T-shirts wouldn't be the best way to show off the new you!

Here's your homework. I'd love for you to e-mail me your responses sometime Monday or bring a printout with you. If not, you get to stay after class to chat with me!

1. How much did you lose? (Weigh anytime Monday for the final number). How did that compare with your goal?

[Ken Rawson] I lost a total of 23 pounds. I gained three pounds during the Thanksgiving holiday and lost those three pounds last week. So I’m still at 23. My goal was 15 so I feel great that I made my goal. I wish I would have treated this more seriously and really tried to lose as much as I could have. But losing weight is really so difficult!

2. How hard was it to lose weight? Did being part of this group make it harder or easier? Why?

[Ken Rawson] Waking up every morning at 4:45 AM to go work out at the Y was tough. Keeping a food journal and counting calories was inconvenient. But keeping from emotional eating and snacking out of boredom was really difficult. Being a part of this group and competition gave me the drive to really take my weight loss seriously. Having people ask me how it’s going was big encouragement to not slack. And hearing friends who have been reading the articles was so affirming. I don’t think I’d have had the initiative to change my lifestyle without being a part of this group.

3. Where do you go from here? Are you going to try to lose more, maintain what you've lost, or dig into something you've denied yourself for the past three months? What have you learned about what you need to do? (See Ken's blog, below)

[Ken Rawson] As previously noted I’ve joined the YMCA’s Battle of the Bulge to get me through the holidays. I’ve also signed up for KSN’s and Play it Again Sport’s Biggest Loser competition which runs for 90 days. I still have a lot of weight to lose so I’m going to keep doing what I have been doing and take it even more seriously. There are several things that are important that I’ve got to do to be successful. Exercising in the morning is part of that. When I don’t exercise in the morning, I rarely, and I mean RARELY, make time to exercise later on. Also, I’ve got to stick to my counted calories and logging them in my food journal. It is a lot easier to lose weight by controlling the calories I’m digesting instead of the calories I’m burning. In one hour I burn 750 calories. If I do that, then I can burn 1 pound, ONE crappy pound, in five days. One pound = Five hours of cardio work. WOW! Also, my body burns 2500 calories a day. So if I limit myself to 1500 calories, and I’m doing an hour of cardio for five days, I’ll burn at least 3 lbs a week.

4. What advice do you have for readers? This is the part I'd really like you to focus on, because this wrapup will also have sort of a "here's help for making your own New Year's resolutions" feel to it.

[Ken Rawson] 1. Join the Biggest loser challenge with KSN and Play it Again Sports. Just don’t lose as much weight as me so I can win the money. My sweet wife and I would like to adopt a baby and could really use that $5,000. So if you join, please sabotage yourself for my sake. I’ll really appreciate it.

2. Get involved with a group or find a friend to do this with. I’ve been doing a cycling class on Tuesdays and Thursdays with the Y and more times than they probably know, their encouragement, camaraderie, and friendship has been the motivation I needed to go workout.

3. Keep a food log and count your calories. Whenever I don’t do this, I slip up. I’ll eat stuff without thinking about it and I’ll eat bad stuff that won’t help me achieve my goal.

4. Get a workout DVD. Sure I look like a dork and I feel like a complete idiot doing exercise videos at home, but after I lose 400 calories and am a sweaty mess, I’m feeling pretty dang good!

5. Join a message board on the internet. Two message boards that I check out are http://boards.nbc.com/nbc/index.php?showforum=19 and http://boards.webmd.com/webx?50@103.ya6QaGyAP2D.3@.5987f41f. The first one is for the tv show The Biggest Loser and the second one is from WebMD. You’d be amazed at the stories out there of people who have really lost weight and become healthy. It’s so encouraging!!!

6. Get off the couch. Really. Just do something. Anything that you do is better than doing nothing. If you lose one measly pound a week, after a year, it looks pretty good! Take the stairs instead of the elevator, eat an orange instead of a bag of chips, skip the bread at Carabba’s, build a snowman with your kids, play with your spouse, whatever!

5. Anything else?

[Ken Rawson] While losing 23 pounds has not been as earth shattering as the people on the TV show “The Biggest Loser” the feeling of fitting in my clothes, moving my belt another notch, feeling great, living a healthier life for my kids and sweet wife, and watching the man on the inside slowly emerge from the man on the outside have been the greatest rewards so far. Thank you for taking a chance on this story and giving me an opportunity to not just share my life with other people, but providing the impetus of change that was so needed.

You rock!

Ken

If you haven't looked at Ken's blog lately, check it out. I especially liked this paragraph:

The bad news: Last time I weighed in, I was at 259. Today I am 262. That sucks. I wasn’t planning on gaining weight back. But I only worked out 3 times and I didn’t count my calories and I ate when stressed. I know better. If I don’t count calories, if I don’t physically write it down, I can’t control myself. And when I’m stressed, I need better methods of relief. I’m amazed at how weak willed I am and how easily I’ll go back to my fat self if I don’t take this seriously.

I don't see Ken as weak-willed at all -- and I am delighted at the insight he has about the necessity to take health seriously, and about what he needs to do to get there.

You all have been awesome. Thanks for all your help -- and see you Monday!

Karen

Thanksgiving Redemption

2006-12-04T07:27:00.000-08:00

Alright, I weighed in this morning and I'm back to 259. This is the weight I weighed before thanksgiving.

Couple thoughts here: 1. Although I worked out Mon-Friday and twice on Mon and Tues, on Thursday-Sunday I didn't eat as well as I could have. That is so frustrating because I was really hoping to be at 248 and I'm still 11 pounds away from that.

2. I haven't lost any more weight for the Eagle contest so I may not win that, and that stinks. I was really hoping for that. So my total weight loss for that is 23 lbs, I started at 282 and now weigh 259. My goal weight was 15 pounds and I made that. So that is good.

3. What else is good is that when I started this blog I was at 282. And I'm 29 pounds from there. Again.

4. What is even better is that when I weigh in on Friday, I will AT LEAST be at 258 which will be 30 pounds, and that's great. My next biggie will be 248 which if I lose that by Christmas will be the best gift of all.

Update and Another Biggest Loser Competition

2006-12-02T07:20:00.000-08:00

Well, this week has been super fast!!! I did two workouts on Monday, two workouts on Tuesday, and good workouts on Wed, Thurs, and Friday. Yesterday's eating wasn't good, but the other days were fine. Sooooo...I'm so hopeful that Monday's weigh in will rock.

In other news, KSN and Play it Again Sports are teaming up to do a Kansas' Biggest Loser and this time it's for real cash! $5K and $3,500 in furniture! Dude, that's some motivation!!! And it's free! Wild!

So I weighed in with my clothes on and I think it was 264 3/4. The rules are that you have 90 days to lose as much weight as you can and you can only lose a max of 2% a week. So they give you a shirt, some official biggest loser info, take your pic, weigh you, etc. So I can lose a max of 68 lbs by Feb 27th!

Dude, if I did that I would wiegh lesss than 200 lbs!!! That would be so freaking sweet!!! So that's some sweet motivation! The only catch will be that people who weigh more than me can lose more. I guess there are some guys who weighted in at 400+ lbs.

I guess the owner of Play It Again Sports is a big fan of the show and wanted to do it and is pretty serious about doing it as well. He lost 16 lbs. the first week! I want to write hime and thank him for doing this. Way cool.

My only advantage is two fold: #1 it's the holidays and people, including me, are pretty weak during the holidays. #2 from doing this Wichita Eagle thing, I know how really difficult this is to do on your own. It's really hard for me.

But I love the opportunity to win big. And I love the spirit behind it. I'm so grateful for the Eagle because I don't know if I would be nearly 30 lbs lighter if I hadn't done this! So I'll be even more grateful for the Play it Again Sports thing if I can lose 30-60 more!!!! That would so rock!

Here's a link to the info. Way cool. good luck!

Mike Morrow...This guy is amazing!

2006-11-29T14:19:00.000-08:00

I was on the Biggest Loser message board today and came across this guy's story. His name is Mike Morrow and he weighed 390+ pounds. It's very inspiring. Enjoy.

My story is pretty simple. I spent a bunch of years traveling around the country doing consulting, eating in nice restaurants and sitting on my rump. I was a great big guy for the better part of a decade and a half. My max weight was 390+ pounds, frankly at 35 my weight was affecting all aspects of my life even though I didn't realize it at the time. When we are dramatically outside of our healthy weight range how we feel daily even our attitude toward life and how we deal with our loved ones is effected by our weight. The weight effects our sleep, our energy level and our ability to do things. Weight is insidious because it creeps on slowly, stealing small bits of our life at a time so we don't even realize what is happening.

I had been on diets a bunch of times over that decade and a half period. I told myself all the lies about why I was overweight and that just around the corner was a magic pill that would help me to lose this weight and be healthy. I wanted to be a healthy weight, I just didn't want it badly enough to make the changes required to make it happen.

Until we had our daughter I was never honest with myself about what I was doing. She was my personal angel that woke me up out of the food induced coma I had been in. That wakeup call came when my daughter was about 3 years old. I realized I was stealing part of her childhood by being overweight and out of shape. I did not have the energy or could not physically do the things she wanted to do with me. I also had concerns about my ability to help her in the event of an emergency. Once my mind started drifting down this path, I realized that if I did not make some major changes, it was likely I would not see her graduate high school or get married nor would I see my grandchildren. At this point the most mortifying thought of all hit: That I may actually let my daughter down! Letting my little girl down was simply not an option.

Weight loss really is all about taking in less calories than you burn. Honestly if controlling there intake is all a person does they will lose weight. I didn't do any exercise at all until I had lost 100 pounds (If I had it to do over again I would have started exercising much earlier in the journey). My "plan" involved eating 1500'ish calories a day 6 days a week. One day a week (After the first 3 months and I could trust myself) I would go out to eat with my wife and daughter. I allowed myself order off the menu getting whatever I wanted. I think this kept me from craving things I always knew I was one week from being able to have whatever. I would skip desert and the bread basket and wouldn't eat insane portion sizes. I think the difference between this time and all the others was the way I looked at this journey, always before I felt I was giving something up, this time I really looked at the diet as "getting something" I was getting my life back. I never once the whole time felt deprived, which was so different from any previous attempt.

The biggest part of weight loss is what goes in your mouth. Exercise is great for your health but it is a rough way to burn off any substantial amount of weight. Once I got down to a "reasonable" size (300 pounds :) )I started walking five miles a day. I used walking to build my fitness level. After 9 months or so I kicked up the activity level. My weight loss rate didn't change much once I added exercise with the exception of not losing a pound the first month I was walking (this was VERY unusual for me).

At least for me, consistency is king, only eating the amount of calories that match my plan and exercising on a daily basis has been very effective for me. This is not to say I don't have days where I eat what I want and throw caution to the wind, even those days are "planned" in that they aren't spur of the moment. At this point I allow myself to eat pretty much whatever I want (within reason) but if it is going to be dramatically outside my normal eating patterns plan for it. I sort of have a 24 hour rule, if I have some sort of evil craving I allow myself to eat it but not until tomorrow and by then the insane urge has generally passed. For me that seems to cut down on the mindless munching.

I have been at my goal weight now for a little over 16 months. So far my weight has been quite steady. I find I can eat quite a bit, if anything I have to be careful not to drift lower due to my activity level and overall better food choices. I workout for at least an hour of cardio a day and usually life weights 3 or 4 times a week for between 30 and 40 minutes.

I feel truly blessed to have been given this gift of a second chance at life. I am active on weight loss forums on the internet. I hope that I can encourage others that are struggling with weight as I did. I know how difficult weight loss can be and hope I can possibly provide the spark that starts someone on their journey. I don't have any magical answers to what will work for weight loss for anyone, but I want to be the cheering section for those that are trying.

If a sedentary 390+ pound middle aged man can drop 58.97% of his body weight and go from a BMI of 52.9 to 160 pounds with a BMI of 21.7 anything is possible! I am including a few before and after pictures in this post people often ask to see them and I have been told they provide some encouragement, it is in that vein I share them with you.

This picture is a montage of me before I started losing weight. Pictures from this era are fairly difficult to come by as you can imagine I was not a huge fan of the camera.

This picture was a fun shot we took as I got close to my goal weight. If you look closely it is my whole family in an old pair of my pants. My wife and I are each in a leg and my daughter is between us. The pants are zipped and buttoned.

This is just a before and after comparison shot. The after is a picture of me running in my first triathlon.

Another before and after comparison shot. The after here is just of me before a training ride for the race I mentioned above.

May God be between you and harm in all the empty places where you must walk.

Mike

Day 41

2006-11-27T13:36:00.001-08:00

Well, the 40 days are officially over. And in those 40 days I lost 20 lbs.

The bad news: Last time I weighed in, I was at 259. Today I am 262. That sucks. I wasn’t planning on gaining weight back. But I only worked out 3 times and I didn’t count my calories and I ate when stressed. I know better. If I don’t count calories, if I don’t physically write it down, I can’t control myself. And when I’m stressed, I need better methods of relief. I’m amazed at how weak willed I am and how easily I’ll go back to my fat self if I don’t take this seriously.

The good news: I still have one more week to really do well. I worked out this morning. I’m gonna try to do 2 workouts each day including Sat and Sun and I still have Monday before our pic. I’d still love, LOVE to weigh 248, that would mean 40 pounds since the summer, and that would rock.

Great blog post by McNutt

2006-11-27T13:28:00.001-08:00

Matthew McNutt is the youth pastor from Maine who made it back on the Biggest Loser reality show. He has a great post about Thanksgiving. He is the man.

The latest Eagle Update...and Rawson takes the lead

2006-11-22T17:53:00.000-08:00

Deadline nears, some goals revised
BY KAREN SHIDELER
The Wichita Eagle

The pressure is on.

WichiTalk's Weight-Loss Challenge team members are closing in on their deadline.

Earlier this year, WichiTalk chose six readers to go public with their weight-loss efforts for three months. We let them set their own goals and decide their own weight-loss methods.

We're planning a wrap-up about their efforts for the Dec. 19 issue of WichiTalk. That should be perfect timing for people planning New Year's resolutions.

In the meantime, here's a look at how the six are doing:

Tom Allen
Allen, 43, a teacher and coach at Northwest High School, wanted to lose 40 pounds but realized that was unrealistic.

He has lost 15 and has learned that South Beach Diet snack bars help curb unhealthy snacking.
Allen is starting basketball season, so his days are even longer than they had been, running from 3 a.m. to 7 p.m. He plans to catch up on exercise -- and sleep -- over Thanksgiving break and to "stay away from the potatoes and limit the pie."

Jamie Goltz
Goltz, 23, who works for the Army National Guard and the Wichita Marriott, wanted to lose 25 to 30 pounds.

She has maintained a 20-pound loss and may show a bit of weight gain in the final report -- because she's pregnant. As a result, her workouts aren't as strenuous and she's being careful not to get dehydrated while still doing "something healthy for myself and the baby."

Goltz has gotten used to smaller portions and doesn't have any major cravings. "I don't even like eating ice cream. It just doesn't taste good to me right now," she says.

Toni Harden
Harden, 46, is a paraeducator at Wells Special Education Center and wanted to lose 20 to 30 pounds.

She has lost 11, less than she'd hoped but not bad given some health concerns, including diabetes.

Harden and her sister will cook Thanksgiving dinner. "My plan will be to drink lots of water during the morning and to consume very small meals" through the day. "With several diabetics in our family, we will have sugar-free desserts."

Crystal Iseman
Iseman, 26, a stay-at-home mom and day-care provider, wanted to lose 25 pounds.

She has lost 13 and is disappointed it's not more. But she also admits that being swamped with homework (she's finishing a college degree) and work means she hasn't paid as much attention as she should to her eating and exercise habits.

Iseman has learned that "drinking lots and lots of water keeps your appetite at bay." But she'll enjoy Thanksgiving, knowing that if she deprives herself, "I tend to end up giving in and eating more."

Andrea McClellan
McClellan, 31, a stay-at-home mom, wanted to lose 25 pounds.

She's lost 18 but regained 3. "I did it to myself," she says. "I have not been working out as much as I should, and my water intake is poor... Boy, did I mess up!"

At Thanksgiving, "I plan to eat what I want, only small servings. Only two times a year do I get sweet potatoes... I will try to eat a spoonful versus a plateful."

She also knows the role that state of mind plays: "When I am not feeling happy, I eat... I just need to start my day feeling good about myself, and the rest will follow."

Ken Rawson
Rawson, 30, director of student ministries at First United Methodist Church, wanted to lose 15 pounds.

He has lost 23 by "counting my calories and keeping it to 1,500, choosing wisely, which means smaller portions and healthier options." He has been exercising 45 to 90 minutes a day and has signed up for the YMCA's Battle of the Bulge, an effort to prevent weight gain during the holidays.

You can read more about his progress on his blog: http://wichitasbiggestloser.blogspot.com/.

Day 35 and I'm feeling ALIVE

2006-11-21T04:56:00.001-08:00

Man, what a great feeling to be taking initiative! Last night, even though it was 10 PM I still got in one of the BL DVD workouts and shed 200 more calories. Got up this morning and did the spin class and it rocked.

When I first started coming to the Y and especially the spin class, man it was kicking my butt! Today I got in there early to test out bikes (they all have different resistance tendencies) to find one that would not be easy. So I picked the hardest out of three and it was STILL easy. So today, I took initiative and instead of letting the class direct my speed and effort, I led out and worked my butt off and it was GREAT.

Now, don’t get me wrong. I wasn’t leading the class and no one was checking me out, going, “Check out Ken, he is rocking today!” But by myself I knew I was really pushing it and that was cool. So I busted out 500 calories in 40 minutes!

The hardest thing about exercising...you know, other than, uh, motivation

2006-11-20T14:35:00.000-08:00

One hour and 45 minutes.

01:45

That’s how long it takes for me to walk, from my desk, to the Y, change clothes, gear up, stretch out, do cardio for 60 minutes, shower, dress, and walk back to the church.

That’s a big chunk of the day to dedicate to losing weight. That’s a lot to ask. And that’s why it is DEFINITELY easier to do in the morning before work. Most people aren’t willing to give up 2 hours of their day OR MORE (I mean, we aren’t even talking about any strength training!) just to lose weight. It’s easier to drink a supplement, fast, or walk. But maybe not better. Of course, doing something is better than doing nothing.

Day 34

2006-11-20T06:24:00.000-08:00

Well, 34 days into this and it’s been a great ride. This last week my parents were here for four days so I didn’t do too well, eating or exercising. But I’m back today. I’m gonna do some work then head on over to the Y.

Also, this whole thing is ending on Dec. 4^th so I still have 15 days. I’d like to break the 250 mark. That’s only 10 lbs. Can I do 10 lbs in 15 days? I think so!!!!! It’d be so great to weigh less than 250. That’d be sweet. So that’s what I’m looking at!

Sean, you rock! We’ll get doing this thing together.

My update for the Eagle

2006-11-15T13:23:00.001-08:00

Alright, here is what I gave Karen at the Eagle. When it comes out in the paper I’ll post it.

1) How much have you lost?

[Ken] 23 pounds!!!!! (really, in the last 28 days! You don't have to print that ;^) )

2) How are you going to get through Thanksgiving? (If it's at your house, what will you do differently? If you're going someplace, what will you do to keep from undoing all your hard work?)

[Ken] I'm going to keep doing what's been getting me here, counting my calories and keeping it to 1500, choosing wisely which means smaller portions and healthier options, and exercising for 45-90 minutes each day! I also joined the YMCA's battle of the bulge to help keep me accountable too through the holidays and the year.

3) What have you "discovered" that helps with the weight-loss journey? I've found that Starbucks Low-Fat Frappucino Bars will get me through a chocolate fix. My editor, who has been slowly losing for quite a while now, said salsa and Egg Beaters (for lack of a better generic term) are her salvation. What things have you "discovered"?

[Ken] I eat this Quaker brand weight loss oatmeal in the morning and it keeps me satisfied until I eat lunch. Also Olive Garden has a Chicken Giardino that is REALLY good and low in calories. Spangle's has a 40 calorie sugar free jell-o, I just wish it was less than a buck! And Spangle's fat free chicken on pita, is okay too. Subway is a good lunch too. There are all kinds of great options available for anyone who wants to do this!

JEANS!!!

2006-11-15T07:53:00.000-08:00

Last night I noticed that my jeans were clean. No fat person enjoys putting on jeans that have been in the drier because they are so tight.
Except for me! I couldn't wait to put on my jeans today and they felt so nice!

I am a loser...really

2006-11-15T07:47:00.000-08:00

So because people have been talking about the BL dvd on the message boards, and because I'm not running outside again for a l o n g time, I bought the dvd yesterday and tried it out. I'm such a dork. I couldn't even do the low intensity work out the whole time. Really great dvd.

and I'm a loser because I haven't put my blinds up in the living room so anyone who drove by my house saw a big fat guy doing an exercise video. Pretty funny.

Day 29...FOUR MORE POUNDS

2006-11-15T07:46:00.000-08:00

Four more pounds, baby!!!! Yeah!!!! I need to send in a report to the Wichita Eagle today on my latest weight loss so I weighed in two days early. That makes 23 pounds through this competition (in the last 29 days) and 29 pounds total!

Oh yeah, and I did my usual Bobby Reed today.

And I almost forgot, over the last 8 days, I missed three days because of that running crap, and a Sunday, and I didn't keep my food log all that well, but I did try to eat well. So I feel pretty good about that!

I am so not ready for prime time

2006-11-14T14:24:00.000-08:00

On the Biggest Loser last week the at home contestants, two of them, made it back to the ranch. And the big point they were trying to say is that while they lost a ton of weight, they weren’t nearly as strong as the Ranchers. One of the things this dude named marty did was he grabbed this half ball like thing and was doing push ups with it. I don’t know how to describe this thing other than it is half an exerball on a plastic platform. Let me see if I can find a pic…

So Marty has it upside down and he’s grabbing it and doing push ups while Bob is saying, “Pop it!!! Make it POP!” as in not literally but bounce back, really push hard off of it and get up in the air. Needlesstosay, the at home guy, Jaron, has a tough time with it and the other guys are like, “Dude, we were so there when we got started. It’s no big deal.”

Then I’m watching the Biggest Loser exercise video extras and it has Suzy from the first season struggling to do this.

Okay, back to today…

I’m in the Spin class and there is one of those exerball things and I decide that I’m gonna try it. So after my work out I go into the empty room. I get on my knees. I turn the exerball thing over and get into the push up position.

I “pop” it.

I did it! Eh, no big deal. I must be better off than all those guys who couldn’t even do it once. Let me see…I’ll try it again…

I “pop” it, again.

This time, when I landed, my sweaty left hand slipped off and my elbow and pinky CRASH into the floor and the exerball thing hits me in the face!

Ah, so freaking hilarious! If only it could have been caught on tape, I’d had made Youtube hall of fame.

Day 28...back on the bike

2006-11-14T14:16:00.000-08:00

Even though I only got 4 hours of sleep last night, I still made it to Spin Class and busted out the bike. After that I did 30 minutes on the new EFX machines…ooh, nice. Tomorrow I need to give an update to the Eagle so I’m going to weigh in 2 days early. We take our last pic on Dec. 5^th so that still gives me another couple weeks to drop more weight!!!

I’m not expecting a big jump on the scales for this last 8 day period, but anything will be great!

Lastly, I went out to BBQ today and did great! Usually eating out is a killer as I can’t control myself. Instead I had a salad with pulled pork with fat free ranch dressing. The only bad thing was the sprinkle of cheese on the salad, but other than that, I rocked.

Oooh...i almost forgot!

2006-11-13T08:25:00.000-08:00

So I see the Y trainer today, I think her name is Melissa. Anyway, she stops by and says, “Hey, you took a week off!” So I tell her the whole story. After my hour is up I’m walking back and I stop by and I ask her, “Why, when I ran, I kept my heart rate up and exerted the exact same amount of energy during my little walk/run thing and I burned the same 750 calories, which is what I do every day, why did it hurt so freaking bad? Why did running on the ground make it so difficult if I did the same amount of work? It doesn’t make sense!”

She explained that it’s a lot easier in the gym, even the treadmill has lots of give, so it’s easier to exercise. My thought is SCREW THAT, I’m never running outside again, that is freaking ridiculous!!! She laughed and said, “It’s really hard on your joints. You just need to lose a little more weight and running will be great.”

I looked at her and said, “A little weight? Yeah right! How about a LOT of weight!” She laughed and said that she doesn’t like to be discouraging so she says, “a little weight” but yes, “a lot of weight.”

Good times. Fat men should not run.

Day...what the heck is today? Day 27

2006-11-13T08:20:00.000-08:00

Well, running took it out of me! Thursday, Friday, and most of the day Saturday I spent limping around. My legs were absolutely killing me. I was dropping Advil like it was Halloween candy but to no effect!

So I didn’t exercise. I didn’t even realize till Friday that I still could have done some upperbody weight training even though my legs were killing me. Of course, at 5:00 am I was just thinking about how much I hurt. At least I know for next time.

And my eating sucked. Which is bittersweet. I found out that I’m really not missing much with my new healthy plan of eating. The other food didn’t satisfy like I thought it would. It was just…heavy.

So I hit the ol’ oatmeal this morning and an hour and 750 calories of cardio. I so didn’t want to do it. I was just dreading it. Even to the point of stepping on the treadmill I was trying to talk myself out of it. But I didn’t. And I felt great. It’s good to be back.

This Wednesday I turn in another update to the Wichita Eagle so that’ll be fun. I doubt I’ve lost much more weight since the past four days have sucked, but every pound counts and I feel great!

Day 22: Freaking Running

2006-11-08T08:06:00.000-08:00

Dude!!!! Yesterday I missed the gym because I overslept. And for some reason I had some motivation last night to do some running. So I strapped on the POLAR and did some running! I did interval running, of running for 1 ½ minutes and walking for 1 ½ minutes…not because I wanted to but because that’s pretty much all I had in me.

Nevertheless, my legs were KILLING me and they still are TODAY! Dude, running on ground instead of a treadmill is SO much harder!!! Nevertheless, an hour of running and exercising and keeping my heart rate up still only equals 754 calories burned.

Then this morning I did the ol’ Bobby Reed plus 15 min on the ARC trainer and while it was so much easier than last night, still an hour only nets me 750 calories burned. Weird.

Day 21: 6 more pounds!!!

2006-11-07T13:32:00.000-08:00

Yesterday was the official 20^th day of my 40 days of Fitness. And I lost another 6 pounds!

So, that is…

6 lbs in the last 10 days

19 lbs in the last 20 days

25 lbs since I began this blog.

I never thought 263 would be a good number…

Days 11 and 12

2006-10-30T07:41:00.000-08:00

No working out Saturday and Sunday. Saturay I was a at a conference all day and did pretty well. Dinner sucked but I still got away with a day under 2000 calories. Yesterday was awesome. No exercise but 1500 calories was great!

Chocolate milk is the devil!

2006-10-28T22:33:00.000-07:00

I was at a conference today and they had subway for lunch. Easy to do well with that. I even gave up my cookie.

Dinner was a little tougher. Fried chicken. I had a breast/ribs thing. Took off the skin. And I had a couple cups of canned carrots and green beans. I gave in to a piece of that jell-o like cake thing without the frosting, but the topper was three glasses of choc. milk.

I had no idea there were so many calories in chocolate milk! So even with an over estimation of the number of calories I consumed today, I was still under 2K, which is great since I still burn 2500 calories a day.

Day 11!!! The weigh in

2006-10-28T08:57:00.000-07:00

Well the power went out and so the alarm didn't go off. I was hurting for time so I was going to postpone the weigh in till tomorrow. But I couldn't wait!

10 days of keeping my calories between 1500-1800...and 8 days of excercise between 45-60 minutes...

Thirteen pounds!!!! Ah yeah!!! 13!!! So from the start that is 19 pounds total! I cannot wait till day 21!!! Talk about motivation! It's not as big of a loss as the the contestents on The Biggest Loser but dude, 13 pounds is GREAT and feels GREAT. I can't wait to lose more!!!!

Day 10

2006-10-27T07:36:00.000-07:00

I made it to the "I'll want to rip out my hamstrings" Kick class today. I had to test out the Polar watch so that I can at least tell them, "You know, I'd like to do your Karate Kid class, but according to the Polar, it doesn't keep my heart rate up where I need it. Sorry."

Good luck with that. 167 high, 142 avg. Smaller average than cycling or other excercise, but meeting other people to work out may just be motivation I need.

I also threw down 30 min on an arc trainer and without the Polar I would have half-assed it. So that is sweet. Still, with over an hour of cardio, I still couldn't kill over 1000 calories. Which makes me suspect of the calorie counting on the fitness machines.

Tomorrow is the weigh in. I cannot wait!!!

day 9 wrap up

2006-10-27T07:29:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was good. I was going on a hot date with my sweet wife so I wanted to be able to eat a real meal at dinner. So I starved all day to save up my calories. I had oatmeal in the morning and made it to lunch where I had 1/2 chicken breast then up to dinner I had 1/2 cup of mac and cheese and then we went to T.G.I. Fridays.

Which was underwhelming. With being so hungry nothing sounded good to me. And thier prices were pretty high. And portions small. Which was nice in a healthy way, and bad as a consumer.

Nevertheless, I tried to gorge but couldn't. I still ended up eating really well.

Day 9...it's all fine

2006-10-26T08:37:00.001-07:00

Of course, it almost wasn’t. I almost didn’t make it today. Last night, after we put the kids to bed, we watched the taped episode of Biggest Loser. Then it was 11 PM. Do I stay up and work or go to bed early to go exercise?

I woke up at midnight. Got off the couch. And set my alarm for…yeah right…4:45 AM. It’s the thought that counts.

4:45 AM: I got out of bed. Turned off the alarm. Moved to the couch where I argued back and forth, Sleep? Or Exercise?

Working out won! I got to the gym and hit my cycling class! I am the man.

165 and then some!

2006-10-26T08:37:00.000-07:00

I got the Polar watch yesterday and brought it to the cycling class. Other than feeling like I’m wearing a bra, it was cool. My heart rate monitor was cool the whole time and I got to see how hard I was pushing it. At one point I was just hovering around 158…and then 160…so I kicked it up and tried to get to 165. It didn’t work. But then, I hit it! And I hit even more. And the coolest thing about the watch (so far) is that when I was done it had my high of 167 and my average of 152. So cool. Don’t know if I’ll keep it yet, but so far it was pretty stinking cool.

Sidebar: The watch barely fits my wrist. Now, I know I’m a fatty, but please, make a watch for the fat guys to wear!!!

Heart Rate Level 166...Yeah...Right.

2006-10-25T08:25:00.000-07:00

So according to this Jillian chick I’m supposed to work out at 85% which would be a HRL of 166.

After completing the Bob Reed, I hit the treadmill for another 15 minutes. I set the mode to Heart Rate, which means that you set the heart rate and it will work you up to that heart rate and keep you there. So this is my chance to feel what 166 is like.

Uh…yeah right. I couldn’t even get my heart rate up to 160 without having to jump off. I don’t know what I’m going to do, but it’s gonna be a while till I can get up to 85%.

Day 8...Feelin' Great

2006-10-25T08:21:00.000-07:00

Almost didn’t make it this morning. Jen and I worked really hard last night and didn’t get to bed till Midnight. I woke up at 5 am knowing I needed to go exercise and hurry up and get to work with so much to do at work. But I decided to camp out on the couch and sleep for ½ hour…

So my son wakes me up at 7 am. Oops. What do I do? I need to get to work so I can pick up the kids at school. But I’ve got to work out.

So I went to the Y and busted out the original Bobby Reed (hill level 10 on the ARC for 45 minutes). I can’t wait to weigh in!!!

Day 7 Wrap Up...The hardest choice so far

2006-10-25T08:18:00.000-07:00

So I kicked but in the cycling class and really pushed it hard. All I had to eat was oatmeal and light fare at chipotle. When I got home Jen was cooking meatballs. Man, she is such a good cook! She was very patient and kind and loving while I tried to figure out how many calories was in each meatball. After what seemed like eternity it came out to around 122 calories each. Knowing that including the banana I was munching on right then, I still had 800 some odd calories for dinner. So at first I decided that I could have 6 meatballs. But I want some green beans and they are cheap. But then came the decision:

Sidebar: We have this great family at church named the Williams’. Their oldest daughter Cassia makes some mean bread called Bird Seed Bread. Man, it is so good! The bread makes a mess, but it’s hard to beat toasted with butter. Being that it is homemade bread I don’t have a clue how many calories are in it. I looked at our butter and it’s 70 calories for 1 TB. So I figure I can get away with 1 tsp for 1/3 of the calories…uhhh….no. I don’t think so.

So here I am with a 200 calorie awesome bread and butter. Well, I have to have one so I decide I’ll only have 5 meatballs. But I still have the green beans to account for so I’ll only have 4 meatballs.

I put three on my plate. Polish them off, the bird seed toast, and about 2 cups of green beans. I count up my calories. I’m still under. I can squeeze in a meatball or I can go over with toast…

So I made the decision. Toast. I’m sure it wasn’t the wisest choice, but I think I would have cried and felt the restriction. I think it was a little mini battle won of rewarding myself. Yesterday completed the first time ever that I had exercised 5 out of 7 days and kept myself to 1500 calories each day. Hooray. My reward is toast.

Weigh In

2006-10-24T07:09:00.000-07:00

So today is Day 7 and I exercised this morning with the cycling class and pushed it hard. Tomorrow will be the first week that I’ve ever worked out 5 out of 7 days and kept my calories to 1500 each day. I so want to see what my total is so far. Yesterday someone said that they can really tell that I’ve lost weight. I love hearing that. But I’m going to wait. I got 40 days. I’ll weigh in on the 10^th day so I can get a bigger pay off. But I’m anxious!

Day 6

2006-10-24T07:06:00.000-07:00

Day six is done! I still haven’t been able to pull a McNutt and exercise 90 min in the morning and an additional 60 min in the evening, but once again, I busted out some upper body work and an hour of cardio and I ate well! Even busted out McDonald’s and got an ice cream, asian crispy chicken salad with light Italian dressing, and I still had 100 calories to spare for the day.

My evil temptress wife tried to reward me with a cookie when we got home, but I refused!

I'm confused

2006-10-23T08:05:00.000-07:00

I need some definitive answers on the Heart Rate Target and exercising. I was set to buy the Polar watch but cancelled my order out of confusion!

Here’s the issue:

Allegedly if you work out at 55%-80% of your Heart Rate (other websites say a little different number) 50% of your calories burned come from stored fat. If you work out 80-90% it goes down to 35% of your calories coming from stored fat and the other comes from quickly replaced calories or gluten or something from somewhere else. So the idea is to work out at a less strenuous level and you’ll lose the fat. This is what Polar says, but of course, they are selling the heart rate monitor. And it’s what “the gym” says, but of course they’d like you to work out longer, spend more time there, purchase more services, make you feel like you need them.

Is this a conspiracy?

Other websites I found yesterday talk about yes it’s true, but if you are wanting to lose weight, then you need to work out harder, because it’s all about calories burned. While most of the calories may come from other Carbs that are easily replaceable, you burn the same amount of fat, whether it’s 30% or 50%.

Here’s just one of the many sites that you can get by googling “Myth of Fat Burning Zone.”

So what do I do? I want to get the most bang for my buck when I’m working out. I also don’t want to kill myself if #1 I’m going to hate excercising, #2 I’m not going to burn more fat.

Is there a clear answer?

(Of course, if anyone read this blog, that’d help. I did add it to my signature in the biggest loser message board, so we’ll see. I also posted a similar question there.)

UPDATE: I did get a quick response from the Biggest Loser MSG board. Which directed me to amazon.com to read an excerpt out of former BL trainer, Jillian.

She says, that the fat burning zone is a myth. And when it comes down to it, to burn as many calories as possible.

She says to work out at the 85% level, which for me would be 166. Whoa! I excercised this morning and tried to keep it to 140ish. Maybe I need to buy the watch anyway...

For further reference the book is "Winning by Losing: Drop the Weight, Change your Life" by Jillian Michaels. Pages 152-154.

Day 6

2006-10-23T07:48:00.000-07:00

Okay, I’m buying into the brainwashing. I felt great today exercising. Like I could have done it for hours. I’ve heard of Runner’s High, but maybe I hit the fat guy high. I don’t know, it was easy. Worked out the chest again since it was fully recovered and did an hour of cardio. I feel great! Brought a ½ sandwich and a smoothie to work.

Day 5 and I'm still alive

2006-10-23T07:46:00.000-07:00

Alright! Day 5 is done! No exercise. My hamstrings were still retreating, but finally my chest was good. Did great with eating!

Had Chipotle for dinner. And I really tried to do well. Two servings of chicken, two servings of their fajita mix, and one serving of the corn salsa.

Well, Chipotle is super fat in the first place. We’re talking 1000 calories plus for a burrito. So I skipped the tortilla and rice and cheese. Pretty good right? Not really.

Their fajita mix is 100 calories. Dude, obviously I’m getting more than green bell peppers and onions! And the Corn Salsa was 100 calories! Dude, that is the last time I get that. Usually salsa is a freebie. You can have tons and it’s like 15-50 calories. The chicken was 219 calories, twice, so a total of 738 calories. 100 more than I was wanting to end the day, but still good. And I had a banana as a snack. Yep, over my count, but still, that’s good for a snack! Still sub 2K.

Escaped with a flesh wound of 255

2006-10-21T21:46:00.000-07:00

Well, I almost won. I went to Catacombs and didn't eat pizza, or candy, or drink any IBC. Truly, Saturdays have been a serious downfall. Probably consuming over 1000 calories from 7-11 pm. That can't be good.

So I had hoped to not eat anything. I got there and grabbed the last Diet Pepsi. Nevertheless, I fell for the sexy and suculant Blue Bunny Neoplotian bar (160 calories) with a side of a snack size Reese's cup (95 calories).

Not too bad. But I can do better.

Dinner was great tonight! I was feeling bad for eating so much. Jen made the Olive Garden's Chicken Giardino and it was so good. We put whole grain pasta in there. So I ate about three servings of whole grain pasta, chicken, and lots of veggetables in a light lemony sauce. So I had 500 calories left before dinner, and after Catacombs tonight I would bet that I'm still under 2K for the day.

And if my results from the Body Gem are still accurate, I still burn 2500 calories every day.

Tomorrow is a new day!

What the ???

2006-10-21T14:16:00.000-07:00

So I make this awesome sandwich. it is so good. I got the recipe from my friend Todd. I've told him to blog about it.

Yes, it's that good.

Anyway, I'm totalling up the calories...515. Not too bad. Except that I could eat prettty much any burger at McDonald's for 500 calories. Seriously. Big N Tasty, Crispy Chicken Sandwhich and more!

The only trade off is that I'm eating lots better food with a lot less fat intake. But calorie wise, it's similar.

So if I want to stuff my face i need to hang out in the vegetable aisle.

Day 4: Moons Over My Hammy

2006-10-21T14:11:00.000-07:00

No, I didn't hit Denny's, but my hamstrings, or "hammies" are freaking KILLING me! What was I thinking doing this Tae Kwan Do class? Every time I kicked my hamstrings must have been cussing me out!

I am feeling it! My triceps are still sore. My shoulders. My chest. And now my legs.

I'm not going to make it to the gym today or to excercising. I'm going to have to work hard at trying to figure out how to excercise at home...especially when it's cold outside. I also have Catacombs tonight which is always a veritable smorgasborg of saturated fat goodness. So I'm gonna have to keep a bottle of water in hand to keep me from straying to the seductive goddess of gorge.

Other than that, today is looking good as far as food take. I figure, even if I'm only able to hit the gym 5 out of 7 days for some serious excercise, if I'm doing well with my calorie count, I should be alright.

Right now I'm just at 1000 calories and I only have a few hours before bed. Good times.

The Polar F11 Heart Rate Monitor

2006-10-20T21:28:00.000-07:00

So after tossing $138.50 to the fine city of Park City for a traffic violation, my need for spending is unquenched.

The heart rate monitors at the Y suck. Some don't work, others are not reliable, etc. And if I excercise at home, it'd be great to know how hard to work out.

So I did some research and this seems to be the one. Everything I'm reading says that this will totally help. So I'm game. I hate spending that much cash, but I think it'll be a great tool and help me achieve my goal.

Now I just have to wait the week before I get it. It looks incredible.

Here's the homepage.

And here are the reviews at Amazon.

Day 3

2006-10-20T21:21:00.000-07:00

So one of the guys in the cycling class leads a Tai Kwan Do class on Friday mornings. I show up and he and I are the only ones there. Another dude shows up. So it's the three of us. They say, "When it's only three of us, we usually go out for breakfast, so if you want you can do that or you can go do the treadmill or something..."

No way! I'd rather learn it in a small group. They were game so we did it. Oh MY gosh! Dude, I haven't worked out that hard since wrestling days. I thought I was going to puke a couple times. To top it all off, my man boobs aka pecs are KILLING me since I worked them on Wednesday. Dude, I'm glad to grow some muscle, but when I can't lift my arms, that's probably overdoing it a bit.

So we did the Kick class for 45 minutes or so and then I hit the treadmill for 20 minutes to catch the highlights of the Cardinals win that I slept through the night before.

Did great on food today and it was so hard. I took Jen out to Olive Garden, which she loves and I like a bunch. But I didn't eat one breadstick. had low cal salad dressing. and I got the Chicken Gardinia which is a low cal option. But it is so hard to not eat more. I could gorge myself on breadsticks alone. And at 140 calories each, that'd be over 1000 in one sitting. Add a couple bowls of salad, three bowls of Zuppa, and I'm done for.

But I did it.

So today, I really ate 1500 calories. I'm not hungry. But I'm not satisfied either. Hmmmm...

Day three is in the bag.

Day 2

2006-10-20T21:18:00.000-07:00

Alright, back with the cycling class today! Man, they are such a cool group of people to hang out with. Super encouraging. They welcomed me back even though I had pretty much abandoned them. And they all knew about the newspaper article, so that was fun.

Worked out with them for an hour and then after I spent 10 minutes on the ol' stairmaster. Good times.

Did great with food until the afternoon. This is when I struggle the most. I made a decent dinner of 4 eggs, and then I ate 6 cookies (360 calories right there) and a couple handfuls of Crunch N Munch.

So that kind of sucked to work out and keep my calories up, and then eat 500 extra calories for nothing.

Yuck!

Day 1

2006-10-20T21:07:00.000-07:00

Well, I did it. I got out there. Spent 45 minutes doing my best Bobby Reed impression by hitting the ARC trainer (or something) and doing the Hill interval at level 10.

Then I did 15 minutes on the regular ARC thing. And that pretty much sucked.

I also did a fat dude caliper test. 31% fatness, baby! Dude, I'm huge! The lady who helped me was kind enough to tell me that before they moved the percentages up a couple years ago, I would be considered obese. Niiiice.

My friend Bart Dick encouraged me to get the caliper test as a goal to get that number down.

Then I did some bench press, overhead press, dumbells, back extension, fly's and stuff to work on the upper body.

Matthew McNutt gave some great advice on what he started out doing with working out. The dude was working out 2 1/2 hours a day! 1 hour cardio, 1/2 hour weight lifting, both of those in the morning. Then getting another hour in, in the evening.

First, when he said he was excercising 2 1/2 hours, I was like, "NO WAY." But now that he's spelled it out, it seems pretty practical.

So that's what I tried to do. 90 minutes. Then, because I have church my night is pretty limited. But we had a fun day out with the middle school guys so we played basketball and other gym games for 90 minutes. Not intense, but more than sitting around.

Day one is done.

40 Days of Fitness

2006-10-20T20:58:00.000-07:00

Alright, I've been slacking here so I'll bust out a quick update.

I'm still fat.

When I started this idea I lost 6 lbs the first week. I went to the official start day with the paper and told them my starting weight was 282.

Then I worked out for another week or so and then I had to roof my house. And that took so much energy out of me and I was so behind on work that I skipped the gym, didn't do my food log, nothing.

I weighed in...280. Whew! I thought I might have gained weight.

Then I gave an update to the paper and slightly fibbed. I feel so dumb that I couldn't tell them I'd only lost 2 lbs. So I said 8. Not really true.

It gets worse.

I weighed in on Wednesday...back to 282.

So I'm back to square one.

But there is hope.

My friend Matthew McNutt who has totally inspired me, lost over 50 lbs in the first 4 weeks of the Biggest Loser. After last week, he has now lost the most out of EVERYONE and he's not even on the ranch! So cool. What a stud.

My other friend Rob Danz, went on a 40 day fast and lost 50 lbs! I'm not ready to fast though. That is insane. I hope he didn't lose too much muscle.

Nevertheless, I figure I'm half way to the end of the Wichita's Biggest Loser. I got about 40 days or so. If I can spend the next 40 days, excercising and keeping my calories around 1500, man, I should have no problem making my 15 lb goal!

So that's what I'm doing. 40 Days of Fitness. Maybe that'll be the new title of a book I can write with Matt!

Another News Paper Article Update

2006-10-18T08:28:00.000-07:00

Here's the link: http://http://www.kansas.com/mld/kansas/living/health/15782518.htm

New food habits are becoming second nature
Check out how the contestants of WichiTalk's Weight-Loss Challenge are doing midway through their commitment.
BY KAREN SHIDELER
The Wichita Eagle

Halfway through their three-month commitment, WichiTalk's Weight-Loss Challenge team members have discovered that dieting doesn't have to be a drag.
"I know salads are my friend and not a punishment," says Andrea McClellan.
"If you plan, you do well," says Toni Harden.
The six began their efforts Sept. 1, after being chosen from 65 people willing to go public with their weight-loss efforts.
Here's a look at how the six are doing:

Ken Rawson
Rawson, 30, director of student ministries at First United Methodist Church, hopes to lose 15 pounds.

"I've lost a whopping 8," he says. But at that pace, "in two years, I'll be a whole new man!"
He's the one who suggested the Weight-Loss Challenge, because a friend in another state is part of TV's "The Big Loser." Rawson thought the public accountability would motivate him -- but has found that it takes more than that. He's trying to make small changes, inspired by the Kansas Health Foundation's "Change Something" campaign.

Jamie Goltz
Goltz, 23, who works for the Army National Guard and the Wichita Marriott, wants to lose 25 to 30 pounds. She has lost 20, she says.

"I feel that my low-calorie, small portions are really working out," she says. She recently spent a week in Topeka, caring for family members during a health crisis, and found herself craving the fruits and vegetables she's gotten used to.
She didn't turn to food for comfort in time of crisis, and "it was really good to see myself not doing that. I was really proud of myself."

Toni Harden
Harden, 46, is a paraeducator at Wells Special Education Center and wants to lose 20 to 30 pounds. She has lost 6, she says.

She has learned the difference between "plan, plan, plan versus busy, busy, busy. If you plan, you do well.... I do much better when I plan my meals."
She has also learned the perils of going public: A woman at a movie theater recognized her from The Eagle's stories and asked whether popcorn was on her diet. "I promptly threw it in the trash," Harden says.

Tom Allen
Allen, 43, a teacher and coach at Northwest High School, wanted to lose 40 pounds and now realizes that was unrealistic. He has lost 10.

He has learned that changing habits takes work. "I have to work on it every day," he says.
He and his family have joined the YMCA and are going to start working out together -- as soon as they get through a move to a new house.

Crystal Iseman
Iseman, 26, a stay-at-home mom, day-care provider and college student, wants to lose 25 pounds and says she is halfway there.

Being busy used to mean turning to junk food because it was convenient. But "I have learned that sometimes being so busy makes it easier to skip the junk food," she says. "It has not been that hard at all."
She has a difficult time meeting her workout buddy at the gym on a regular basis but is fitting into smaller sizes -- and realizing how supportive her family and friends are of her efforts.

Andrea McClellan
McClellan, 31, a stay-at-home mom, hopes to lose 25 pounds and says she has lost 13.

She finds herself craving fruits and vegetables when she's hungry. She also thinks before she eats. "Sometimes your brain says to eat but your body says 'no more food,' " she says. "You have to know why you want it and then decide to eat real food" instead of junk.
In addition to working out with a personal trainer, McClellan takes a belly-dancing class and practices while she's vacuuming or doing dishes -- moves "that work your booty off while having fun!"

Cheer them on
When we started the three-month Challenge, we invited readers to share encouragement or advice. Several of the six team members say they read what you write. Tell them more on our WichiTalk blog: Go to http://blogs.kansas.com/wichitalk/ to post your comments.

Since the story ran in the paper...

2006-09-20T22:22:00.000-07:00

I've received three calls.

One was from someone who called my house. Kind of creepy. Anyway, really nice, well meaning lady. She ended up hooking us up with Juice Plus.

Another call was from a guy named Bart, who used to attend a church that I served. When he called, I thought he was going to sell me something too. I couldn't have been more wrong. He called to genuinely wish me luck and said that he used to be a trainer and was willing to help me accomplish my goal.

Of course...I'm waiting for the other shoe to drop..."at what cost?" I"m thinking...

Nothing. He'll do it for free! Man, that is so sweet.

Then the last call was from some dude, allegedly a believer, who was going to try to sell me some snake oil magic pill, etc.

I can't imagine the phone calls McNutt is receiving, especially if I'm just one person he's inspired.

I'm happy with three.

So I'm scared...

2006-09-20T22:17:00.000-07:00

I guess this is as good of a place as any to say it.

I'm scared.

I haven't worked out in...let's see...how many days...exactly two weeks.

Now, I did roof a house last week, which killed me, but that was last Wed, Thurs, and Friday.

Since then...nothing.

It's quarter after midnight tonight...and I want to sleep. I don't want to get up early.

And I don't want to keep a food log. I want to eat whatever I want.

And that's exactly what got me here.

I may not excercise first thing in the morning...but I will do an hour of cardio tomorrow.

And before that...I'll weigh in.

I've got to.

I've got to do something.

And then I'll call Bart.

And then...I'll be back.

McNutt is off the show...for now

2006-09-20T22:11:00.000-07:00

Okay, so I'm stalking Matthew McNutt. He was the youth guy that inspired me to do the Wichita's biggest loser thing. And he didn't make the cut. He can still make the show, but dang.

Once he was not picked, I looked over at my sweet wife and said, "Why are we even watching this anymore?"

Nevertheless, I'll keep watching, hoping he makes it back.

Pretty interesting show. I hadn't seen it before. Sidebar: How many bikini shots can they throw in of the other trainer chick? And how many times will Ken from Washington hug her?

Okay, rant done.

Dude, those people were losing 10-20 pounds in one week! That'd be so sweet. And I guess expected if all I was doing was eating less, eating healthier, and excercising all stinking day.

Loved the one dude, the fire fighter dude (sarcasm). I think he wanted to quit but didn't want to say so, instead he said that he really missed his kids. Maybe so. But I doubt it. I know...I'm an ass.

Here's a quick update...

2006-09-19T14:05:00.000-07:00

Had to do an update for the Wichita Eagle today. Here are the answers to my questions:

1) Have you lost weight? If so, how much? If not, what has held you back?

[Ken] I don't know. Haven't weighed in for over a week. I keep getting comments that my face looks thinner, my stomache looks smaller, etc. So...I think so. Some of my answer relates to my next answer...

2) Have you exercised? If so, how often? If not, what has held you back?

[Ken] I haven't exercised in over a week. At least not your traditional exercise. I'm really not trying to add suspense. Last week I spent Wed-Fri roofing a house and let me tell you, good night! That is some stinking exercise!!! Man, was it tough! So I'm hoping I lost some weight from doing that. The stress of getting all my work done so that I could take off time from work to roof that house held me back. But now that it's done, I'm hoping to be back this week!

3) Overall, how have things gone? Are you getting used to smaller portions
or fewer calories (or whatever other approach you're using)?

[Ken] One of the big things I struggle with is the idea that because I have to eat smaller portions, I'm some how missing out on something really good. Which brings back LOADS of memories as a kid, being deprived of ice cream and cookies. So that when I was an adult, I could finally have these things I was missing out on, and I was afraid of never getting it again. I know that sounds lame, but it is what is in my mindset all the time.

I haven't used my food log yet. I keep thinking that it's too much work....But I know that it'll help. So I need to get on it.

Are you getting support and encouragement from people around you?

[Ken] Tons. All the time. Way cool.

Have you had anyone say, "Hey, aren't you the one in the newspaper?"

[Ken] A few people. I've gotten some phone calls too, that were kind of strange. But one was from a friend who used to be a trainer and he told me that he'd help me meet my goal free of charge! So that is WAY awesome!

Are you feeling more energetic? Better overall? Or worse?

[Ken] I feel great! Even not excercising, my mental state is really good.

4) Anything else you'd like folks to know.

[Ken] Thanks for all the encouragement! Making a life change is really difficult, but with all the people encouraging us, man, that is so helpful!

Well, it's officially on!!!

2006-09-12T14:00:00.000-07:00

The paper looks great today!

I've received lots of encouragement from all kinds of people. Way cool!

And even though I'm last in the web article I was first in the newspaper. We hit the front page and the front page of the Wichitalk section. Great pics. Lots of fun. I bought a couple papers to send to my family.

I'll share more later, but for now, here's a link to the page and the text in case it get's out of date:

http://www.kansas.com/mld/kansas/15494728.htm

Taking the challenge
Meet the Wichitans committed to losing weight and getting healthier
BY KAREN SHIDELER
The Wichita Eagle
Bo Rader/The Wichita Eagle

SIX volunteers in WichiTalk's Weight-Loss Challenge hope to be a combined 150 pounds lighter before Christmas.

The six were chosen from 65 people who were willing to go public with their weight-loss attempts. We told Tom Allen, Jamie Goltz, Toni Harden, Crystal Iseman, Andrea McClellan and

Ken Rawson that we would follow them for three months, reporting on their progress as they worked toward the goals they set.

Unlike TV's "The Biggest Loser," this isn't a contest to see who can lose the most. Instead, the payoff is better health.

In December -- just before it's time to make New Year's resolutions -- we'll report back on how our team did and share their tips for success.

We'll update you, too, on how they're doing along the way, with the hope that their stories will inspire all of us to commit to our own health efforts.

Here's a look at each of them:

Tom Allen

Bio: Age 43. Married with three children. Teacher and coach at Northwest High School.

His goal: To lose about 40 pounds.

How he'll do it: Exercise -- riding a stationary bike or running every day -- and monitoring calories. "I'm going to look for foods that are filling yet low in calories." He has started a food journal.

Potential challenges: Weekends. "During the week, I'm so busy that I don't get hungry." He also eats when he gets too tired.

His motivation: Health concerns, a promise to his wife that he'd lose weight before her birthday in January, and "I want to be around for my kids' graduations."

Jamie Goltz

Bio: Age 23. Married. Does secretarial-clerical work for Army National Guard.

Her goal: To lose 25 to 30 pounds.

How she'll do it: Counting calories, giving up junk food and watching portion sizes. She'll do cardio work in the McConnell Air Force Base gym and strength work on her own.

Potential challenges: Family and holidays. Over Labor Day weekend, "I was eating more starches and stuff I'm trying to cut out."

Her motivation: She got married in March but didn't have a "wedding wedding." They'll have that in April, and she hopes "to fit in a dress I like." She also has health concerns that weight loss would lessen.

Toni Harden

Bio: Age 46. Single with two children. Para educator at Wells Special Education Center.

Her goal: To lose 20 to 30 pounds. "I want to be healthy. I'm too old to be skinny."

How she'll do it: Counting calories and reducing fat intake. She already exercises but "I really am not as consistent with the weights as I am with the cardio."

Potential challenges: A slowing metabolism. Plus, "I'm a big snacker... I eat a lot of healthy stuff. But I love chocolate chip cookies, chocolate cake."

Her motivation: Health issues. And her job is physically demanding. "Maybe if I lost a little bit of weight, it wouldn't be such a challenge."

Crystal Iseman

Bio: Age 26. Married, three children. Stay-at-home mom, day-care provider and online college student.

Her goal: To lose 25 pounds.

How she'll do it: Counting calories. She has enlisted a weight-loss/exercise buddy. They will work out together three times a week.

Potential challenges: "It's really easy to just go with fast food or frozen dinners sometimes when I'm so busy." She plans to shop more wisely.

Her motivation: She lost weight before her most recent pregnancy and remembers how good she felt. Plus, "I want to show myself and other mommies out there that there has to be time for Mom to take care of herself."

Andrea McClellan

Bio: Age 31. Married with two children. Stay-at-home mom.

Her goal: To lose 25 pounds.

How she'll do it: She's using a meal-replacement drink for two meals a day and eating a sensible meal for the third. She is working with a personal trainer.

Potential challenges: Getting though holidays and family celebrations, eating for emotional reasons and eating at night. "If I eat at night, I can't stop."

Her motivation: Health concerns: Her father died of a heart attack at age 41. One son has Type 1 diabetes. And "I'm just so tired of telling my husband that I'm going to lose weight, and then I just put it off and put it off."

Ken Rawson

Bio: Age 30. Married with three children. Director of student ministries at First United
Methodist Church.

His goal: "This is going to sound pathetic, but I'm going to say 15 pounds -- a pound a week."

How he'll do it: Eating better foods and smaller portions, plus exercising five to six times a week and "not eating when I'm not hungry." He'll keep a food journal, to track calories.

Potential challenges: Stress eating. "Eating out is a hard one for me, too," he says. He doesn't often take food home "because I think it's never going to taste as good as it does right now."

His motivation: "I'm worried about my health and I want to be a good example for my kids. I want to enjoy life with my sweet wife."

282...again

2006-09-05T07:59:00.000-07:00

Well, no weightloss this week. I'm still at 282. Kind of deflating. However, a lesson learned.

I can't expect to lose weight and eat whatever I want. I went out to eat three times and overate EACH time. I only excersized twice, the two biking classes.

On Mon. my alarm wasn't set so I slept in.
Tues I did the cycle class.
Wed I overslept or something
Thurs I hit the cycle class
Friday I was sick
Saturday I wanted to stay home with my kids
Sunday I didn't work out.

Monday I did 45 minutes on the Arc Trainer at level 10 and burned 1077 calories with my man Bobby Reed.

Today I did the cycle class.

Anyway, eating is the whole deal here. I've got to track my calories, eat healthy, and not over eat. THAT, combined with excercise will take me to my goal, which is 109 pounds away, or roughly two years.

Man, do I feel like crap today

2006-09-01T10:17:00.000-07:00

So yesterday I work out and I eat a baggie of grapes. I am starving at one so I go to lunch with my friend Kirk at Old Chicago's where I get my favorite, the Oriental Chicken Salad. Oh my, so good. I should have ordered a half salad cause the thing is El Gigante.

So I'm stuffed. After work there is very little time before we need to head to soccer practice. So after soccer practice we head up to IHOP, or as my sweet daughter calls it, the National house of pancakes.

(sidebar: Great server, Annette, but terrible manager. Allegedly it's kid's eat free night, but you can't use a coupon with kid's eat free night?! What?)

I am not even hungry but my sweet wife and kids are stinking famished. I have to order a meal and a drink to get a kid's meal free, but I should have ordered smarter. I gave in to my favorite, the chocolate chip pancakes. Let me here you...Oh yeah. And a side of hashbrowns.

Okay, so I'm done at the hashbrowns but I've got to eat the pancakes. I can't even finish them. But I feel sick to my stomache. The whole way home I fantacized about bulemia.

So when I got home I tried to puke some. And I got a little, but not much. Nevertheless, the whole rest of the night I just felt like crap.

Fastforward to this morning and I feel like crap when my alarm goes off, so I go back to bed. Sleep in late and all day I'm just dragging. Yuck. No energy. Feel like poop.

Ate a small breakfast, am skipping lunch, and am going over to a friend's house for dinner. I'll be eating light.

The Eagle's article is starting!!!

2006-08-31T07:24:00.000-07:00

So next week I am meeting with one other dude and three ladies who are going to do the Wichita's biggest loser contest. We only have three months so I can't imagine that i"m going to lose more than 15 pounds. But it'll be great to meet them and share life together.

I'm excited for the article to come out. Besides being a sucker for having my name in the paper I think the fact that so many people have already been encouraging me without my pic in there, when it is, it's going to be a whole lot more motivation to not fail in front of a big audience.

And it'll be fun to send to my parents. They've always been concerned with my weight, appropriately and innapropriately at times. But they'll be proud of me and I'm a sucker for that as well.

Not to mention my sweet wife called me to say how proud she is of me and how every day that she wakes up and I'm not asleep on the couch, she's amazed.

Sidebar: I have often woken up early with great intentions to work out or get to work early only to wake up way early and move to the couch till my kids woke up. eh eh eh

Talk about a wierd feeling today...

2006-08-31T07:22:00.000-07:00

So I don't want to get too hyped or read too much into this and it may not happen ever again.

But something wierd happenned after I worked out today: I had more energy leaving than when I usually do. The last 5 times I left going, "I'm glad I did it, but dang am I tired and hurting."

Today? No pain. More energy. I feel great!!! I hope I'm not getting myself too psyched out.

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2006-08-29T12:59:00.000-07:00

Ah yeah...6 pounds the first week.

I always lose a lot of weight the first week. It's almost like God's little gimme week. My body doesn't know what's going on and I eat really well. And I was sick three days to boot!!! Yeah, you know I'm gonna lose some weight if I'm not eating.

I'm sure this week won't be as dramatic, but I'm still eating well, and still excercizing. Did the cycling class again today. What a fun group of people. The cycling class wasn't as hard but it may be that I wasn't pushing myself that hard either. Nevertheless, I sweated it out and feel great!

So stinking tired!!!

2006-08-23T08:12:00.000-07:00

So had a sweet workout yesterday and last night wanted to keep reading a couple books I've been working on. So I stayed up till Midnight thinking that if I got up at 6 AM that'd be 6 hours of sleep.

I think my body needed 10.

I got up at 6 and turned off the alarm. And "seconds" later it was 7 am and I was back in bed. eh eh eh.

So no workout today, but I feel great and can't wait till my cycling class tomorrow.